Reciprocity
by Alatus Alchemist
Summary: Riley has just received her first pokémon and is eager to set out on a journey of her own through the region of Muren from her home town in the northwest, Carrus Town. Further east, however, are numerous reports of pokémon acting strangely and unusual noises. The region is preparing for the Fallow Festival, held every twelve years, but is something lurking in the shadows?
1. Chapter 1 - A New Friend

"Riley! You've got post!" Rose's voice called up the stairs, prompting the eleven-year-old to put down her book. Post! Post was always exciting. She scampered down the stairs, still in her buneary-print pyjamas despite it almost being afternoon.

"Does it say who it's from?"

Rose looked at the parcel she'd just signed for, a decently sized box with air mail stamps plastered across it above the address: Carrus Town. "Looks like it's from Kanto," she replied as Riley arrived in the room. "Have you-"

"Jack post!" Riley bounded over to take the box to the kitchen and set it on the table, Rose following with a fond smile at her daughter's eagerness.

"You should be listening when she's speaking," Coco said, sat with her phone and a mug of coffee. Perry, the family's furret, was curled half on her lap, half hanging off. "And no, I don't think she _has_ had breakfast yet."

Rose shook her head, placing a hand on the box. "Eat first, then open."

"Awww!" Riley whined, but shot over to grab a bowl of cereal nonetheless. As soon as she was sat eating, she pulled the box over, piping up through a spoonful of cornflakes. "'An I o'en i' while I ea'?"

"Keep talking with your mouth full and you won't get to open it 'til after lunch," Rose said wryly, ruffling the girl's unkempt brown hair. Riley quietened down at that and focussed on devouring the cereal as fast as possible, taking the bowl to the sink before tearing into the packaging. Inside the box was a lot of bubble wrap, and a letter on top. Riley glanced at the handwriting before opening it, her face lighting up as she read.

"It's! Uh… It's a thing! Jack made it!" Riley said excitedly, putting the letter aside to open out the bubble wrap. Coco rolled her eyes at the vague description, chuckling as she reached for the letter. "Perry, Perry, gimme your paw!"

The furret lazily opened its eyes, looking at the young girl questioningly. She held what looked like a tablet out. It was a thin grey slab, and at the bottom was a screen, dimly lit. "Put your paw on here?"

Perry sat up and sniffed at it before obliging. The screen display changed, stating it was scanning, before a few lines showed up.

 _Pokémon: Furret  
_ _Temperature: Normal  
_ _Average size  
Status: Normal  
_ _Sex: Female  
Seems: Content_

"Cool! Jack's so good at making stuff," Riley said in wonder. Coco looked over and cleared her throat.

"Did you see the P.S. at the end?"

"What?"

"That's a no, then." Coco handed the letter back, and gave Rose a knowing look. She smiled widely in response.

Riley read the rest of the letter and gasped, diving into the box. She reached into it, carefully pulling out a tightly condensed wad of bubble wrap, scrambling to find the edge of the tape surrounding it to tear it off.

"He's a horrible tease, isn't he," Coco said, but she was beaming anticipatedly. She watched Riley struggle with the tape for a while, until Rose went to get a pair of scissors to help. Riley insisted on great care being taken while they cut through to the item inside – a poké ball, with a small tag taped to it. Riley tugged off the tag to read it.

 _Take good care of this one. I got him specially for you._

The young girl looked up excitedly at her mothers, as if waiting for permission.

"Go on, then," Rose said cheerfully.

Riley squealed as she pressed the button on the ball, letting out the pokémon contained within. The light flashed out and seemed to linger as Riley watched in wonder, sparkling around the pale orange puppy pokémon that appeared.

"A growlithe! Wow!" Riley knelt to look at the striped dog. He looked up with his ears perked, attentive.

"Wow indeed," Rose murmured, looking at Coco, whose gaze was turned down at the dog, one eyebrow cocked.

"He sure is something," she said.

"Oh!" Riley turned to grab the tablet-like object that had accompanied the creature. "Here, here! Put your paw on here! Oh, but you probably know if you were with Jack, right?"

The puppy nodded as it placed its paw obediently on it.

 _Pokémon: Growlithe  
_ _Temperature: Normal  
_ _Larger than usual  
Status: Normal  
_ _Sex: Male  
Seems: Curious_

"Wow," Riley murmured again as the pokémon took back its paw. She stretched her hand out to let the puppy sniff it. "We can be friends, right?"

The growlithe looked up at her after getting her scent, and nuzzled her hand. She beamed. Perry slunk down from Coco's lap to investigate the newcomer, sniffing and walking around the young pup almost menacingly, though if the growlithe was intimidated he didn't show it. Coco swatted at her, and she backed off a little. She seemed satisfied though, letting out a purring noise as she hopped back onto Coco's lap. The woman scoffed and gently clipped the ferret's ear, drinking from her coffee mug. With all the commotion, a vaporeon padded softly into the room, greeting the canine. Snipe swished his watery tail as he appraised the growlithe, blinked once slowly, then took his leave again.

Riley marvelled at the dog a little longer before letting out a sharp gasp. "OH! Ohmygosh! So I have a Pokémon now! Does that mean I can go on a journey?"

"The penny dropped, huh?" Coco smiled as she set her mug down, and Rose took a seat on the other side of the table.

"We'll see," Rose said, offering her hand to the growlithe. "First let's just wait a while. You wouldn't to go off travelling with a stranger, would you? Get to know each other a little."

"On which note," Coco said as she sipped the coffee, "Are you gonna stick with Growlithe or give him a name of his own?"

"Oh! A name," Riley said thoughtfully. "Hmm…"

"What do you think?" Rose asked, looking down at the orange puppy. He looked up at her, then at Riley, and nodded.

"Cool! What name to use… I can suggest things and if you don't like them you can shake your head?"

The dog nodded at her, letting out a little huff of agreement.

"Umm…" She sat thoughtfully, and the room eventually fell silent for a few minutes - until Coco snickered.

"Any thoughts, Perry? _Nice_ ones?"

The furret looked at the growlithe, and made a noise between a purr and a coo.

"Prew?" Riley echoed, humming at the puppy. He shook his head. "Yeah, it doesn't seem right…"

Perry shook her head and looked up at Coco meaningfully.

"You do have an idea? Huh," she mused, glancing at the letter on the table before reaching for it. "Oh, let's try that tablet thing? Jack called it… a StatRed?"

"I don't think it reads thoughts," Riley said, but offered it to the ferret regardless. The result was the same, except the _Seems: Content_ was changed to _Seems: Thoughtful._ "Mmmm…"

The growlithe yawned, lying down. Rose got up and left the room, soon returning with paper and pen. "Come on up," she said while she wrote, and Perry sat up and hopped onto the table. Rose span the paper - upon which she'd written the alphabet – and passed it towards her. Perry had been taught human writing so she could communicate more easily, and had been more than happy to utilise readily over the years. The number of times she'd just spelled out "Treat" or "Hug" when she wanted some pampering was great, and Coco was usually glad to indulge. For now, Perry pointed to the R, the U, then B, and Y.

"Ruby?" Rose said. "Though that's more often a girl's name."

"But it does sound good, I think," Riley replied, looking to the growlithe for confirmation. He shook his head. "Maybe something similar?" The Pokémon blinked back at her. "Like… Ru… Roo… Rudy! What about Rudy?"

The puppy tilted its head, considering.

"It could be short for something!"

"It actually is short for Rudolph," Rose said. "Means something like 'famous wolf', I think." The canine perked up at that, nodding.

"Ooh! That sounds fancy! You like that?" Riley asked. The growlithe nodded again energetically. "Then it's decided! You're Rudy, short for Rudolph!"

* * *

(A/N: yooo! thanks for giving my story a gander! hope you enjoy it. I was inspired to write it after reading Burning Thunder (psst go read it it's just phenomenal) so big shout out to TheDogzLife, who is not only a magnificent writer but one of my best pals and a great person and all around Good Bean. I'm gonna try and update on a schedule and see how that goes. have a good day!)


	2. Chapter 2 - Preparations

Riley sat at her computer, still beaming as she typed, a messenger open on the screen.

 _ **Royles =D:**_ _thank you sooooo so much! the post came today! it's amazing i can't believe u made that urself and i love rudy! that's what we called the growlithe btw.  
_ _ **Pyro Jack:**_ _Glad you like it. Spent a while getting the StatRed right.  
_ _ **Royles =D:**_ _i wish i could make stuff like u! ur the best cousin ever!  
_ _ **Royles =D:**_ _what's the part that says Seems: _ about?  
_ _ **Pyro Jack:**_ _It just interprets probable current emotion. And sometimes other stuff. It's pretty general.  
_ _ **Royles =D:**_ _its pretty cool is what it is  
_ _ **Royles =D:**_ _did my mums ask u about getting me a pokemon or did u just do that bc u wanted to?  
_ _ **Pyro Jack:**_ _Are you kidding? I'm not going to do anything to cross your mums. They asked me to, they'd probably get pretty iffy at me if I just gave you a pokémon of my own accord.  
_ _ **Royles =D:**_ _haha they can be p scary  
_ _ **Royles =D:**_ _im gonna go on a journey with rudy though! thanks to u! u r definitely my fav cousin ;p  
_ _ **Pyro Jack:**_ _Hell yeah I am. When are you going?  
_ _ **Royles =D:**_ _in a month! in the meantime im gonna prep and learn everything i can  
_ _ **Royles =D:**_ _and me n rudy are gonna be best friends  
_ _ **Royles =D:**_ _lemme send u a pic!_

She stopped typing to turn to Rudy, patting her lap. "Wanna send a pic to Jack?"

Rudy considered for a moment before he barked in agreement and hopped up, standing with his paws on the desk.

"Okay! Say cheese!"

* * *

That weekend, Riley headed into town with Rudy to look around the shops, wondering what things they should get before heading off on a journey. All sorts of things looked useful for travelling, but she could only take what would fit in her backpack, so she had to decide what was most essential. Enough clothes to last the visits between towns with places to wash them, clothes for different weather, raincoat and umbrella… How much tech would she have? Should she get a little manual charger for when she's away from towns? Extra thermal layers? It was already April, but the weather was always changing. And all that was just for her! Was it worth getting a little cool box to keep berries and such in or would it take too long to travel between places with fridges and freezers available? Should she get repels in case the wild pokémon were stronger than she expected, how many potions and status-healing items should she have? How many poké balls? What kind of other pokémon would she catch? She'd have to get better at coming up with names on her own…

She came up with a list of things to possibly get and decided to consult Coco. She had been on a journey when she was younger, so she seemed like she'd know best. Riley was almost hopping as she headed back home, still buzzing with excitement about it all – she couldn't wait to get going! She did get what Rose had said, though, about getting to know Rudy first. The puppy was trotting along beside her, stopping to sniff at things every now and then. She wondered what the best way to bond would be. She'd heard battling was a good start, but she'd never battled before and was a little nervous. Maybe Perry could help?

She arrived home to the smell of delicious cooking, filling the house with a wonderful smell.

"I'm back!" Riley called down the hallway, pulling her shoes off.

"Welcome home, sweetie," Rose said, appearing from the living room. "Have a successful trip?"

"Yeah! Uhh…" Riley paused briefly as she pulled the list she'd made from the pocket of her jeans. "I wrote down a bunch of things and thought I'd ask what you guys think?"

"Good idea." Rose followed as Riley headed to the kitchen, sniffing the air appreciatively.

"Smells yum! What's for dinner?"

"Bolognese," Coco replied from in front of the stove. She was leaning against the counter while the sauce simmered. "Good day, kiddo?"

"It was alright! We saw lots of stuff that seemed like it'd be useful but I can't decide what to actually take. What do you think about… All of these?" Riley handed the list over, peeking at the open pan. "When's it ready?"

Coco ruffled Riley's hair affectionately as she read through the list. "Just waiting for the pasta to finish boiling. Most of this is good stuff to have, but you need to think about how much will fit in your backpack, and how heavy it's going to be. You have to be able to walk all day with it, after all."

Rose got out cutlery and pasta bowls before she sat at the table, smiling. "By the end of your journey, you'll probably be so used to carrying loads around that you'll be stronger than me!"

"Really!?"

"Wow. That's got to be the first time I've seen anyone so excited to lug heavy stuff around," Coco said, chuckling. She scooped a strand of spaghetti out to test. "Alright, it's ready. Riles, can you grab the cheese? It's grated in that bowl." She brought the pans to the small kitchen table as Riley brought the cheese, setting them down and pulling out one of the three chairs. Perry had been dozing and flicked her ears as her seat moved, opening her eyes and hopping down to the floor. She filled the bowls generously and passed them round. "There's bolognese left over if anyone wants extra."

Riley reached for the cheese, mixing some into her food before sprinkling more on top. "Thanks for the food!"

"Thanks to everything and everyone that helped in providing," Rose said, leaning over to kiss Coco on the cheek.

Coco set Riley's list on the table between herself and Rose while they ate. "'S it good?"

"Super yum!"

Rose nodded in agreement, looking at the list. "Will you really need thermals?"

Riley paused between mouthfuls to reply. "I thought just in case, since weather is weird?"

"They'll take up quite a bit of space since they're padded, and you'll probably only need them if you head up Mount Magna."

"I remember going there on my journey!" Coco piped up. "It was flippin' cold up there, but the lake was beautiful. Snipe loved it. I'm glad I had Charlie with me to warm me up, though." Charlie was Coco's old houndoom, and had been her first pokémon.

"I bet," Rose nodded. "Have you heard from him and Lari recently?"

"Yeah, they sent a victory pic the other day. Some kid had challenged her to a fight all confident because he had a bunch of water-types, but Lari still won. Charlie looked real proud of himself. Hey, I bet he'd love to see you if you meet up with them. Though he'll probably want to battle, so maybe wait 'til you've gotten good and strong."

"Yeah! It'll be great to see Charlie. It's been ages," Riley said. "Oh, oh, maybe we'll see Mei too! I mean, if we go through Blackridge we'll definitely stop by the nature reserve."

"Oh, she'll love to see you, too. She's such a big softie, she'll probably get all emotional about how much you've grown up," Coco said, chuckling. "For a tyrantrum, she's not very ferocious. Maybe the staff will let you go see her up close since you're her trainer's daughter."

"I hope so! Rudy, I can't wait for you to meet Mum's other pokémon," Riley said excitedly, kicking her legs under the table as she looked down at the puppy. "Charlie and Mei are great. I bet they'll love to meet you, too!"

The growlithe was sat attentively, listening. Upon being addressed, he gave a little bark, wagging his tail slightly.

"So what route around the region are you thinking of taking?" Coco asked.

"You always say Chillhaze Forest is full of really tough pokémon so I guess I should wait for a while before I go there, so first we'll go towards Diony Town. Uhhh… After that I'm not sure. We can decide when we get there," Riley replied.

"Sounds good. I barely had a plan when I left myself," Coco said, chuckling. "I remember when I headed to Diony Town the first time. From the opposite direction. We took a wrong turn in Clay Cave… We hadn't actually planned to head up Mt Magna at the time, we were gonna save that for later. But hey, plans change."

"It can't change if it didn't exist in the first place," Rose said with a smile. By now everyone's bowls were empty. "Anyone going to have more?"

"Nah, I'm good," Coco said, and Riley agreed.

Rose stacked the bowls and took them to the sink. "In that case, it's time for you to get ready for bed, Riley. You've got school tomorrow."

"Awww, I don't wanna sleep yet," Riley said. "When I go to school can Rudy come too?"

"I doubt it, but you'll have to ask your teacher to be sure. Tomorrow he can stay home with Perry and Snipe, and you find out what the rules are. They might have exceptions for partners when you're about to head off."

"Hmm… Okay!" Riley bent down to pet the puppy as she got down from the table. "You wanna sleep on my bed?"

Rudy simply blinked at her while Rose tutted slightly. "I won't be the one clearing the fluff off your bed in the morning."

"Okay! C'mon Rudy!" With that, Riley bounded upstairs, Rudy following. Tomorrow would be a good day. She couldn't wait to tell her classmates she'd be going on a journey!


	3. Chapter 3 - Lessons, Or Lack Thereof

Riley woke up aching slightly, lying at the edge of the bed. She sat up, looking around. When she'd gone to sleep the night before, Rudy had definitely been curled up at her feet, but over the course of the night he'd managed to stretch out in the middle of the bed, pushing her out of the way.

"Rude!" Despite what she said, she was smiling as she tapped the dog on the nose. "Rude-y!" The pup yawned as she climbed out of the bed, hopping down beside her. "Let's get breakfast. Breeaaaakfast!"

She sang a nonsense song about breakfast as she went down the stairs. Rudy descended a tad slower than her, moving carefully. The steps were much bigger to him. Riley waited for him at the bottom, then went in to the kitchen. Rose was by the kettle, putting a teabag into a mug with a skitty design. Snipe and Perry were both in the room, waiting next to their food bowls. Beside theirs was Rudy's, still not quite a familiar sight.

"Morning," Rose said, smiling.

"Mooorning," Riley sang back, getting a bowl out.

Snipe let out a gruff cough, like he was clearing his throat.

"Just a minute," Rose said as she poured water into the mug, a fruity smell filling the kitchen.

"I'll do it!" Riley put the bowl down on the table, still empty, and rushed to the fridge. She pulled out a bag of pokémon mix, home-made by Coco, and got out enough for three portions. Rudy trotted over to sit next to the other pokémon as she put the food into the microwave to heat for a moment so it wouldn't be cold, sniffing eagerly as she pulled it out ready to pour into the bowls. She reached out to pet him as she bent down, smiling. "Here you go!"

"Thanks, love," Rose said, now holding a second mug. "Take this up to Coco? I'll get your breakfast ready."

"Okay!" Riley took the mug and went back up the stairs, slowly this time so as not to spill the dark drink. Coco preferred coffee, while Rose liked fruit teas best. She knocked on her mothers' bedroom, but the door was left open so she didn't hesitate before going in. "Here, Mum! Coffee!"

Coco was in bed still, her hair looking dishevelled. "Thanks, kiddo," she murmured sleepily. She sat up before taking the mug, drinking deeply. "Ahhh, that's good."

"Can I try some?" Riley had always thought the smell of coffee was weird, but Coco absolutely loved it, so it must be at least a _little_ good, right?

"It's pretty bitter," Coco warned, draining most of the mug, leaving but a mouthful behind. "Here ya go."

Riley went to drink the leftovers, only to spit it back into the mug instantly, pulling a disgusted face. "Ew! That's gross!"

Coco chuckled. "Warned you," she said as Riley took the mug downstairs hurriedly.

Riley almost ran to the bowl of cereal Rose had left on the table, shoving a spoonful in her mouth to try and be rid of the taste of the coffee.

"Slow down or you'll choke," Rose said, sitting down with breakfast of her own – yoghurt with chopped fruit, a buttered slice of toast on another plate separate.

Riley chewed and sat down properly, then resumed eating at a more reasonable pace. "Coffee's gross! Why does Mum like it?"

"It's something of an acquired taste," Rose said.

Coco appeared in the kitchen a moment later, dressed for the day. "Don't forget to take this to school with you," she said, waving a letter at Riley.

"Okay," Riley said, taking the letter and putting it on the table next to her. "Does Rudy _have_ to stay at home?"

"Yes. Don't worry, I'm sure he'll be fine," Rose said consolingly.

"Aww…"

Riley headed back upstairs after finishing her breakfast to get ready for school, coming back down dressed and with her bag on her back. She looked up at the clock – there was another five minutes before she had to leave. She put the letter in her bag, then sat down to pet Rudy for a while. Upon seeing that Perry immediately came over, draping herself over Riley's lap for attention. The child giggled, happy to pet Rudy with one hand and Perry with the other. When the time came for her to leave, she was still sat there.

"You need to be on your way," Rose reminded her.

Riley looked up, trying to keep a cheeky smile off her face and look as innocent as possible. "But Perry's lying on me, and I don't want to make her uncomfortable."

"She'll manage just fine, I think," Rose said, picking up the furret. Perry made a dissatisfied noise, wriggling slightly in her grasp, before climbing up to perch around Rose's shoulders. She was a little too big to do so easily and took a while to get her balance, her long tail held up to help her as she settled.

"Okaaaay…" Riley said, exaggerating her disappointment with a heavy sigh. She stood up and went to the door.

"Have a good day," Rose called as she left.

"Will do!"

* * *

Riley got over her mild sorrow at leaving Rudy behind quickly, and arrived at school with a bounce in her step. She walked into the classroom determinedly, letter in hand, striding over to the teacher's desk to hand it over.

"Miss Williams! I've got a letter," Riley declared, the pride clear in her voice.

"Well, what _ever_ could that be about?" The elderly teacher said, a tired but gentle sarcasm in her voice. "Heading off soon, are we?"

"In about a month!"

"Well, you'd best pay more attention in the pokémon classes," she said.

"Whaaaat? Are you leaving too, Riley?" The familiar voice was accompanied by one of Riley's classmates, Molly, appearing beside her.

"Yeah," Riley said as she put her bag on a hanger, sitting at one of the desks.

"What pokémon have you got?" Molly asked, following.

"A _growlithe_ ," Riley boasted.

"Wow! Where did you get one?"

"My cousin Jack lives in Kanto! He got him and sent him to me. His name is Rudy," Riley said, her hands patting the table top in front of her.

"I wanna see!"

"Mum says I can't bring him to school though," Riley said. "Oh! Miss Williams! Mum said I should ask if I would be allowed to bring my pokémon to school with me? …Pleeeaase?"

Miss Williams, sat reading the letter, shook her head. "Any pokémon on the school premises must be kept in poké balls at all times, and you need a letter explaining why you need them with you. That's for if you need them for safety walking home and things like that, not just because you want to."

"Aww…"

"Lucy couldn't bring Truffle either," Molly said. Her sister, Lucia, was a year older, and had left on her own journey a few weeks ago. "Oh! Maybe you'll see her at some point!"

"That would be cool! I wonder if he's still a shinx or if he's evolved by now."

"She calls up every once in a while so Mum and Dad don't worry, I think a while ago she said he was a luxio now."

"Cool!"

Their chattering died down as Miss Williams cleared her throat, standing. "All right, settle down, it's time to get started. If you'll get your textbooks for History, we'll be starting from page 43."

* * *

"Riley! Can I come see Rudy?" Molly asked as soon as they were let out in the afternoon. They'd been chatting about journeys and pokémon all day, Riley going on about Rudy and the other gift from Jack, the StatRed, while Molly spoke of how excited she was to go travelling herself some day as well as everything she remembered Lucia telling her about her own adventure.

"Sure! Shouldn't you ask your parents first, though?"

"Yeah, we'll have to go by my house first," Molly said. Her house was in the opposite direction to Riley's, but not far.

"Okay!"

It was only about a five minute walk from the school gates to Molly's home. Her father, Stan, was the one to get the door. "Hey, Molls. And Riley! What brings you over today?"

"Riley's going on a journey!" Molly said, ducking in and dumping her bag by the door. "Can I go over and meet her pokémon?"

"Sure, but don't leave your bag there. Take it up to your room," Stan said. Molly didn't complain as she obliged, and Stan leaned against the door frame. "Feeling ready to go see the region?"

"Yeah! I wanna go already, but Mum – uhh, Rose – says I should wait a while. I already got all the stuff I need on the weekend, though," Riley said.

"Maybe we'll see about letting Molly go soon. She's definitely missing her sister, and Cass too, so if you're leaving soon she might get a little lonely," he mused. "But well, Clara and I aren't sure that she's really ready yet."

"Why's that?" Riley asked, but the answer was interrupted by Molly coming back down the stairs.

"Nevermind. You two have fun, and Molly, don't stay out too long."

"Mm-hmm! I'll be back before dinner," she said.

"Bye!" Riley said as they left, heading back in the direction of the school.

They got back to Riley's home soon enough. Snipe, sat on his plush bed at the foot of the stairs, greeted them as Riley opened the door.

"I'm baaack!" Riley called through the house. "Molly's here!"

"Hi, Riley, Molly," Rose said from the kitchen. "Coco's in the garden with Rudy and Perry. Good day?"

"It was all right!" Riley said, leaving her bag by the stairs for the time. "I can't take Rudy to school with me, though."

"I thought that would be the case," Rose said.

Riley and Molly went out to the garden, where Rudy and Perry were playing together. Perry was taking great joy in running circles around the young puppy, lithely dodging out of the way whenever he was sure he'd land the next pounce.

"Hi, Mum!" Riley said cheerfully. Coco was sitting on a bench under the garden's tree, a folder next to her on the bench, currently closed while she watched the pokémon.

"Welcome back," she said, waving. "Hey, Molly! How's it going?"

"I'm good," Molly said, looking at the growlithe. "He seems a little different to what I remember from the pictures I've seen of growlithe before…"

"Yeah, he's a bit bigger than others," Riley said. "Hey, Rudy! I'm back!"

The puppy looked up and barked in acknowledgement, only for Perry to tangle herself around him as he tried to run over, tripping him. He kicked at her as he got up, but she had already bounded over to the bench. He huffed at her as he turned away to come over to Riley and her friend.

"Hmm, that doesn't seem quite it," Molly said, but left it at that, reaching to pet him.

"This is Molly," Riley said, beaming.

Rudy stood patiently, trying to sniff at Molly's hand as she pet him. She reached to feel his ruff, and he flicked one ear.

"Wow, he's so soft!"

"Isn't he?" Riley said.

Perry made a small scoffing noise from the bench, where she'd climbed up onto Coco's lap. Coco rolled her eyes. Rudy stepped back after a moment, walking to the other side of Riley.

"What's up?" she asked. His only response was to start grooming himself, licking the fur of his ruff back to its previous positioning.

Molly followed, trying to pet him more, but he walked away, looking up at Riley.

"Um, I think he doesn't want to be pet right now," she said.

"What, but why?" Molly said, trying to reach over again. He stepped back and growled a small warning.

"You should probably leave him alone," Riley said uncertainly, looking over to Coco.

"If he doesn't want to be touched, don't insist on it," Coco said.

"Mmm, okay…" Molly said reluctantly, giving it up after an adult's intervention.

"I'm sure Perry would love the attention though," Coco said with a smile. Perry let out a small purr.

Molly seemed disheartened, but went to sit by her, petting the large ferret instead.

"I'm gonna get snacks," Riley said, turning back to the house. "C'mon, Rudy." The puppy followed her gladly as she went to the kitchen. Rose was no longer there, so Riley helped herself to some bourbon biscuits before looking down at the growlithe. "Maybe stay in here for a while?"

Rudy nodded before wandering out of the kitchen, heading up towards Riley's room. Riley went back out to the garden, handing half of the biscuits to Molly.

"Thanks," she said before chomping down on one. "Where's Rudy?"

"I think he went to go nap," Riley said.

"Aww," she said, clearly disappointed. "Maybe I'll go home soon."

"Already?" Riley asked.

"Yeah, I should go start on my homework," Molly said curtly, getting up. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Oh, okay," Riley said, following her to the front door. "See you!"

Molly waved as she left, and Riley closed the door, puzzled. That was very sudden. She went to go sit next to Coco in the garden, and Perry stretched out over her lap.

"Mum? Did I do something wrong?"

"Nope," Coco replied. "I think she just has a lot to learn about pokémon. She hasn't got any at her house, does she?"

"No, her mum and dad don't have any…"

"She's just not very experienced around them, that's all."

* * *

Coco's explanation was sound and she had been perfectly confident as she said it, but Riley was still worried when she went to bed that night. Rudy was at the foot of the bed, but she wished he could fit in the space up closer to her head, if only for a little comfort. It would be nice to wake up and see him and know at least he was still happy to be right there with her.


	4. Chapter 4 - Differences

Riley woke the next morning feeling weighed down. So much so that she was finding it hard to breathe… She looked across the bed to see Rudy stretched across her, right atop her ribcage. This pup certainly did just sleep where he liked, that was for sure. She wriggled out from under him, prompting him to roll over to a less unstable spot. She could hear someone moving around downstairs, which usually meant it was a reasonable time to get up, so time to get ready for school.

Oh. Yeah. School. Riley still wasn't sure what had happened yesterday, but she felt uneasy about it. Molly was supposed to be her friend, why had she just suddenly lost interest like that? Before, she had seemed so eager to come over! What had happened? Riley didn't understand.

She walked down the stairs with less spring in her step than usual. Snipe was still curled up in his bed at the foot of the stairs, but he was awake, and let out a gruff greeting as she passed on her way to the kitchen. She hummed back and nodded as she went. She wandered into the kitchen wearing her best reluctant expression, but no-one was there. She sighed and got herself breakfast. A moment later Coco came in, dressed and ready for work. Riley looked up with the most forlorn eyes she could muster.

"Do I _have_ to go to school today? I'm not feeling too good," she said.

"But you're well enough to be eating," Coco pointed out as she sat down. Perry was following, and hopped up onto the third seat. The furret knew by now she would get scolded if she sat on Coco's lap when she was in her work clothes. "What's got you down?"

"Umm…" Riley tried to think of a quick excuse, but she had already foiled the faked illness, as Coco had noted. Nothing came to mind, though, so she soon gave up. "Fiiine, I'll go…"

"Not what I asked but hey, I won't complain about that," Coco said with a small smile. "Still worried about yesterday?"

"Mmm," Riley mumbled.

"If something's wrong then you can't fix it by avoiding things," Coco said, reaching over to ruffle Riley's hair. "Even if you're nervous, wouldn't it be better to be proper friends again?"

"Yeah," Riley said, but still sounded reluctant.

"You'll be fine," Coco said reassuringly. "I can come with you on your walk to school if that might help."

Riley paused, nodding after a while. She still didn't really want to go at all, but at least being around one of her mothers for a little longer would help her feel a little better about it while they were together.

By the time she'd finished eating, Rudy had wandered downstairs. He noticed she was looking unhappy, and came over, standing upright and putting his paws on the edge of her chair for balance.

"Hey, Rudy," she said, petting the puppy. "I gotta go soon. School." He blinked and nuzzled her hand, then got down and rested his chin on her knee. She was happy to sit and pet him until it was time to go.

A while passed, and the time came for them to leave. Riley was still nervous and was tempted to hold Coco's hand, but she didn't want to seem like a child. She was about to go on a journey, so it was time to be a bit more grown-up. Coco tried to make conversation as they walked, but Riley wasn't overly responsive so she gave up after a while. They arrived at the school ever so slightly early despite Riley's reluctant slow pace. Coco wrapped Riley in a warm hug.

"Don't worry too much. I'm sure you can make up, and even if worst comes to worst, you've always got all of us at home. Plus on your journey you'll make a bunch of new friends too, I'll bet."

Riley didn't reply, but squeezed her mother tightly in return. "See you later, Mum."

"Have a good day, kiddo."

Riley wandered into the classroom and looked around. Molly was there already, but looking elsewhere, chatting with Sam. Riley slunk into the classroom, trying to avoid being seen. She still wasn't sure why, though. She sat quietly, hoping nothing would happen. Miss Williams cleared her throat after what seemed like an age, and started the class. Nothing yet.

Lessons passed by and break time arrived. Riley took a book with her to the playground, ready to read away the time. Maybe if she looked busy reading, she would be left alone and not have to worry about it…

Her plan didn't quite work, though. A short while into the break, Sam came over. He was one of the smarter kids in the class – or at least, he always got slightly better grades than Riley in almost everything – and his family had moved to Carrus Town only a few years ago.

"Hey," he started simply.

"Hi," Riley said. He'd been talking to Molly earlier. Would she have said anything to him about… whatever had upset her?

"You're going travelling soon, right?"

"Yeah," she said.

"It's good to take care of your pokémon and learn how to protect them," he said, sitting on the wall next to her. "But don't be too overprotective."

"What?" Riley was confused. Where was this coming from?

"Well, I mean… You can take care of your pokémon and still let them do stuff and not be overbearing," he said carefully.

"Well, duh," she said. "That's obvious."

He seemed thoughtful for a moment, debating what to say. "It's just, Molly said you wouldn't let her pet your growlithe."

That's what this was about? Rudy wanted to be left alone so Molly got upset? Riley furrowed her brow. "He didn't want to be pet! That's stupid. I wouldn't not let her pet him just… for no reason!"

"I'm just saying what she said," he said defensively.

"That's just dumb, though! He's not, like… Just a thing I own! I don't _decide_ that he doesn't want attention, he just doesn't!"

"Why wouldn't he?" Sam asked.

"I don't know!" Riley said exasperatedly. "Maybe he was tired! But she was petting him and he didn't like it so he backed away, and she just kept trying to."

"I see," Sam said quietly. He left it at that, walking away.

Riley looked back down at her book, but didn't read the words in front of her. She was busy thinking about what Sam had said – or rather, what he'd told her Molly had said. That was just… well, stupid! It was obvious Rudy didn't like what was going on, so why would she keep going in the first place? And then when she was told to leave him alone, it was _Riley's_ fault somehow? That didn't make any sense! She sat there stewing until the break ended and it was lesson time again.

As she walked back to the classroom, she saw Molly, and their eyes met. Molly looked almost expectant of something. Riley simply looked away. As far as she was concerned, she hadn't done anything wrong, so there was nothing she needed to fix.

The day passed, and the two didn't speak a word to one another. Riley wasn't feeling anxious any longer, so stopped trying to avoid speaking to anyone, but instead she was irritated. Molly was just upset for no reason, as far as Riley could see. When the school day finished, she hurried home to seek counsel from her mothers. When she opened the door to the house, there was no-one in the hallway, but she heard Rose greet her from the living room.

"Welcome back!"

"Hi, Mum," Riley said, dropping her bag by the stairs and taking off her shoes. She went into the living room and saw Rose on the sofa with the TV on, so she plopped down next to her.

"How was your day?" Rose asked, looking over from the screen.

"Eh… It was okay," Riley said.

"Doesn't sound it," came Coco's voice from behind them as she entered the room. She ruffled Riley's hair and sat down with the two of them. "What happened with Molly?"

"She's being stupid!" Riley said angrily.

"Well then," Coco said, taken aback slightly at how quickly Riley's temper had risen.

"She thinks I wouldn't _let_ her pet Rudy! And that's just, stupid! He just wanted to be left alone!"

Coco bit down a smile. _I mean, she's not wrong._ Rose caught her before she could conceal it and shot her an exasperated look, rolling her eyes.

"She just doesn't understand him as well as you," Rose said.

Riley let out an irritated huff. Why did adults always say that? Oh, they just don't know better, or they're just jealous of you, or don't _get it_ like you. They were in the same classes, they learned all the same things, they were the same age, how different could it be? As she was thinking it, Rudy walked into the room, followed by Perry. She hopped up to the back of the sofa and stretched out across it, while he jumped up to sit by Riley. The small piece of furniture was getting rather crowded.

"Hi, Rudy," she said, scratching behind one ear as he got comfortable.

"Sofa party," Coco said with a smile. "We just need Snipe and the gang's all here."

The vaporeon was curled on an armchair nearby, and looked up at the mention of his name. He looked over at the group, judging how much space was left.

"C'mon, you can totally fit," Coco encouraged, patting her lap. "Let's get a big snuggle party going on. We can't just ignore it when Riles is upset now, can we?"

Rose smiled at that as Snipe shifted, swayed by Coco's words, and got up to join the rest of them. It wasn't exactly an easy fit but he squeezed himself between Coco and Riley, nuzzling the young girl. Riley couldn't stay mad for long with everyone paying attention to her – even Perry had let her tail drift down from the back of the sofa, her soft fur gently brushing against Riley's cheek. She put one arm each around Rudy and Snipe to hug the pokémon, wishing she had enough arms to hug everyone at once.

"You all are the best," Riley said. Coco smiled and ruffled her hair, and Rose put one arm around her in a half-hug. It was the best she could do with Rudy between the two of them.

"We try," she said gently, patting Riley's shoulder. "Hmm… It seems a shame no-one else is around, if only because all of us squished up together would make for a great family photo."

"Damn, you're right," Coco agreed. "Oh well. Not much we can do about that."

The group were happy to just sit there and cuddle for evening. Eventually they had to get up and have dinner, then it was time for bed for the young Riley. She felt much better going to sleep today than she did yesterday.

* * *

(A/N: featured on today's chapter, Kids Being Immature. anyhoo, people seem to be liking this (if gainin a few followers is anything to go by) so i'm glad! hopefully its up to standard. have a good day yo)


	5. Chapter 5 - Not As Planned

The week passed, and Riley went to school as usual. Molly continued to say little to her, but she ignored it. She didn't have anything to say to her - other than that she was being stupid – but her mothers always told her that if she didn't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. Some of her classmates who spoke to Molly often had started speaking to her less, but Sam was still friendly, at least. He had taken to sitting and chatting with her during breaks. To be honest, she did feel a little lonely with half her classmates ignoring her in favour of Molly, but she hadn't done anything wrong, so she _wasn't_ going to apologise. Coco and Rose hadn't brought up the topic, so she figured they'd forgotten.

The weekend came and it turned out this assumption may not have been a correct one. On Saturday when Riley finally pulled herself away from reading in her room to get breakfast, Rose was in the kitchen, beginning to chop up some vegetables for lunch.

"You stayed in bed pretty late," she said with a smile as she saw Riley.

"I was reading. The story is getting really good," she said.

"Yeah? What's happening?"

"The main guy just found an old tomb with zombie pokémon in it and now he's trying to find out if there's any way he can help them, 'cause they're only zombies because of a curse on the tomb, and they want to go back to rest so he's looking to fix it."

"That's good of him," Rose said. "So, what happened with Molly? She hasn't come over again so I'm guessing things aren't patched up yet."

"She's not talking to me," Riley said simply.

"Have you tried talking to her?"

"No. Why would I?"

Rose hummed thoughtfully before responding. "Well, at this rate if neither of you speaks to the other you just won't be friends. Are you okay with that?"

"Hmph," Riley said stubbornly. "I have other friends, too."

"It might be worth thinking about nonetheless," Rose said. "Friends are precious, after all."

"Well so are pokémon and their feelings, but apparently _she_ doesn't think so."

"I'm sure that's not true. She just… Has a lot to learn about pokémon as fellow living creatures."

"But why? Isn't it obvious that they're their own people? Well, y'know, not people but pokémon. But still…"

"Well it's obvious to you, but different people think differently. And you did also grow up in a house with Perry and Snipe, so because you've known them all your life, you know that they have their own personalities and feelings, and Coco and I have taught you to be respectful of that."

Riley grumbled, clearly dissatisfied still.

"You're a wise one to already have a thorough grasp of it, Riley," Rose said softly, and smiled. "Honestly, Coco and I are pretty proud of it. There are plenty of people in the world who just look at pokémon as things to battle with and show off your strength, or an excuse to go travelling. There are even some adults who think that way, unfortunately."

"What? But why?"

"I couldn't say. I don't understand it myself. It's just how some people are," Rose said with a sigh.

"If that's how Molly is, I don't want to be her friend," Riley said, a hint of sadness in her voice.

"She's young. For her it's probably just something she hasn't learned yet. The adults I mentioned are often people who have had the chance to learn it but refused for some reason or other."

"You think so?"

"Mm-hmm."

Riley paused thoughtfully. "Okay."

At that point, Rudy wandered in. He had been playing in the garden with Perry but now seemed decidedly done with their games. He saw Riley and wagged his tail as he came over to greet her.

"Morning, Rudy," she said, smiling as she patted his head.

"It's not morning now," Rose said, turning back to the vegetables. "Coco only had a morning shift today so she'll be back soon. Want to help with lunch?"

"Okay! What is it?" Riley asked.

"Veggie soup. Go wash your hands, and I'll get the peeler out and you can get started on these potatoes."

* * *

Monday came and Riley headed to school feeling a little nervous. She wasn't sure she wanted to try talking to Molly. On the one hand, what Rose had said made perfect sense, and if it was just something that needed explaining to her then that was fine and not scary at all, but on the other, what if Molly turned out to be like those adults Rose had spoken about? Or what if she didn't listen? Much as Riley told herself she had nothing to worry about, she couldn't help but do so.

The school day started much as the last few had, with nary a word between her and Molly in the time before class started. Sam was still being perfectly friendly and Riley had been chatting to him in the mornings instead. She had decided if she was going to talk to Molly she could do it at break time. During the classes she managed to forget about her nerves about doing so by focussing hard on her work – it was a class about pokémon this morning, and she wanted to learn everything she could to take the best care of Rudy she was able to. It passed quickly, however, and break seemed to arrive all too soon. It couldn't hurt to wait until lunch, right? Riley wandered over to the spot she liked to read at, sitting on the wall and watching the trees sway in the light breeze.

A while passed, and Sam came over. "Hey," he said.

"Hiya."

"Whatcha up to?"

"Nothing, really. Just thinking, I guess."

"Yeah? What about?" Sam asked as he sat down next to her.

"Mum says I should talk to Molly, but… I dunno," Riley said, kicking her legs against the wall.

"Why's that?"

"She reckons if I don't then we just won't be friends anymore and that I just need to explain to her, but… Mmmm… What if she doesn't care?"

"You two have been friends for ages so it should be fine, right?"

"Probably…" It made sense, but Riley wasn't convinced.

"I could try talking to her," Sam said.

"Really?" Riley was a little surprised, although truthfully she was hoping he might offer. She hadn't expected him to actually do so, though. "That would be great! Yeah, um, please. Thanks, Sam."

"Back in a minute," he said with a small smile, standing and walking away.

Riley watched him as he crossed the playground to speak to Molly. A few of their other classmates were gathered around her, chatting in a group. A moment after Sam approached them, Molly looked over, and Riley averted her gaze. She went back to looking at the trees, trying not to get overly anxious. It wasn't long before Sam returned, and she looked back upon hearing him near, hopeful.

"She said you should talk to her," he said, pausing. He furrowed his brow, seeming to have something else to say, but couldn't find the right words, perhaps, and shook his head. "You should go over there."

"Oh," Riley replied, heart sinking. She wouldn't be getting out of this conversation so easily, clearly. She looked over reluctantly, about to get up, when Molly started approaching. She tried to keep the worry off her face, steeling herself.

"So," Molly said as she got near. "Sam said you've got something to say." She almost sounded… smug. What did she think this was about?

"Yeah, I guess," Riley said reluctantly. "Umm… So last week you got annoyed at me after Rudy wanted to be left alone."

"Who said I was annoyed?" Molly said coyly.

Riley just looked at her. "Don't be stupid, you haven't spoken to me at all since then," she huffed.

"It's not my fault you won't let me play with your growlithe," Molly retorted.

There it was. Riley wouldn't _let her_. The nervousness was fading now, being replaced by the irritation that had come when she first realised how Molly was seeing this.

"I didn't not _let_ you- That's dumb! He just didn't want to play at the time," Riley said.

"He's your pokémon, isn't he? You could've just told him to play."

"No, I can't! Well, I guess I could, but he doesn't just automatically listen! And that would be stupid, too," Riley said, trying to keep her voice neutral. "If you don't want to play with someone and your dad just told you to play with them anyway, would you?"

"I might," Molly said. Riley narrowed her eyes. _Who would do that? She's obviously lying._

"Whatever. Either way I can't just tell him what to do and make him do whatever I want. Pokémon aren't like that," she said.

"How? If a trainer tells a pokémon to use a move, they do. If a nurse tells a pokémon to help a sick one, they do. Why can't _you_ just tell Rudy what to do?"

"That's different!" This seemed like a futile conversation, and the irritation was creeping into Riley's voice. "He's not just a toy or a robot or something!"

"Everyone else can tell their pokémon what to do, so you must just be bad at owning a pokémon," Molly said haughtily.

Riley, bad at owning a pokémon? This coming from the person who refused to even see something as simple as living things have their own lives and feelings? That was _it_ , Riley wasn't going to keep trying to be nice anymore.

"That's stupid! _You're_ just stupid!" she said angrily. "You can't even tell that anyone else might want to do their own thing! You think everything should just go as you want it, all the time! You, you're spoilt!"

Clearly this got to Molly, and her expression changed to one of anger as well. " _I'm_ spoilt? _Me_ , the one who doesn't get to live with any pokémon _at all_? You've had them around you your whole life!"

"Yeah! I have!" Riley said bitterly. "I've lived with pokémon since I was born, so if anyone here knows how to treat them, it's gonna be me! Not you, the idiot who's never had any and knows nothing about them!"

Molly paused for a minute, unsure what to say in response to that. She glared at Riley, eventually finding her voice. "Well, I hate you," she said, seething.

That stung, and tears pricked Riley's eyes as she responded. "Well I hate you too!"

Despite the lump in her throat, Riley stood her ground, and glared back from her seat on the wall. Molly turned her back and walked back to her group of friends on the other side of the playground. Sam looked awkwardly at Riley, unsure what to say. Riley broke the silence first.

"She's the worst! I should just-"

Whatever she was about to say was interrupted by the bell, ringing to alert them that the break was over. Riley growled as she stood, storming off into the classroom. For the rest of the day, she determinedly ignored anything and everything to do with Molly. She was done talking to her.

* * *

Riley arrived home still in a foul mood, saying nothing as she quietly opened the front door and immediately headed up to her room. The springs in her bed's mattress were loud and squeaky so she was sure the others would know she was home when she flopped down on it, but she didn't care. She didn't want to speak to anyone right now.

She lay there with her face down on her pillow, and finally allowed the sadness that had been welling up inside her to spill out. She tried to hold in the sobs but they escaped her regardless, muffled by the pillow, now dampened slightly by her tears. Why did this have to happen? All she did was try and take care of Rudy properly, and now she'd lost her oldest friend. And it wasn't even her fault! She hadn't done anything! It was just Molly who was being stubborn and mean and wouldn't listen to reason!

It wasn't long until Rose came up, knocking softly on the bedroom door before she came in. Rudy was following as she sat on the side of the bed, the young pup jumping up to sit by Riley, sniffing at her worriedly.

"Not a good day, then?" Rose said quietly.

"Mmm," Riley mumbled between sobs, turning to sit up slightly and sniffing.

"C'mere," Rose said, pulling her into a hug. Riley gladly wrapped herself in her mother's embrace, hiccupping slightly as she clung to her. Rose was quiet for a moment, gently stroking Riley's hair and letting her calm down. When the sobbing had stopped, she spoke again. "Tell me what's wrong?"

"I- I tried to talk to Molly like you said but-" Riley's words were interrupted by another hiccup, followed by a loud sniff. "She said- she hates me!"

Rose's immediate response was to hold her daughter tighter for a moment. "Shhhh. It'll be okay," she murmured.

Riley sniffed again. In her misery she couldn't see how things would be okay, but she was content to hide in Rose's arms and pretend otherwise. There was still what Coco had said before, too – no matter what happened, she would always have her and Rose to fall back on. Perry, Snipe and Rudy too, she thought to add on, as the puppy lay down by her and rested his head on her leg. At home, at least, things were good.


	6. Chapter 6 - New Experiences

The days went by, but Riley didn't return to her usual self easily. At school she and Molly refused to speak to one another if they could help it, but when at home Riley's sadness would begin to pour out. She had taken to spending less time in her room reading and more downstairs with Coco and Rose, finding solace in their presence. Rudy was sensing her less energetic mood and would often come and sit with her for a while, lying across her lap or leaning against her. She appreciated it – there was something more comforting about it when she could feel he was right there.

As a result of the crumbled bond with Molly, Riley had been spending more and more time with Sam instead. He was understanding of the situation, and good at listening. At least, he seemed to do more listening than talking, anyway. That Friday he had ended up inviting Riley to his house after school. His house was a bit farther away though, and his father usually drove him to and from school.

"Since it's not close I'd have to make sure I can get back," Riley said as they walked out of school together. "And ask my mums first. They'd probably be fine with it, but y'know, I still gotta ask first."

"Yeah, okay," Sam said, thinking for a moment. "Maybe Monday then?"

"That should be okay! Oh, do you need to ask your parents first or anything, though?"

"I can ask Dad, yeah," Sam replied, looking down the street. "Actually, I can ask him now, since he's parked just over there."

"Cool," Riley said, following as he went over to the car.

As they approached, the man in the driver's seat rolled down the window. He had curly dark hair and a clean-shaven face, and wore an easygoing smile as he looked out at the two of them. "Hey, Sammy-boy! This your friend?"

"Mm, this is Riley," Sam answered, returning the smile. "I was asking if she wanted to come over."

"That so? It's a pleasure to meet you, and any friend of Sam's is welcome any time," he said, giving Riley a thumbs-up. "I'm Nick."

"Hi, Nick, um, nice to meet you," Riley said, a little nervously. Talking to adult strangers was always a little weird.

"We were thinking maybe Riley could come over after school on Monday? But she has to ask her mum first," Sam said.

"Yeah? Sounds good. Dunno if I've met her at any of the parent-teacher meetings, what's her name?" Nick asked.

"My mums are Coco and Rose," Riley said, thinking. "Coco's a bit shorter and has light brown hair, and Rose is a bit thinner with blacky-brown hair but with some blond bits in it."

"Two mums, eh? Hmm… Not sure if I can remember anyone like either of those. Guess we'll have to meet up sometime and see," Nick said. "Oh, I know. Here, I'll write down my number and then they can call me if they want to meet up before you come over."

"Okay," Riley said, watching as he scrambled to find a scrap of paper and a pen amongst the stuff in the car. After he found some and wrote it down, he passed it to her, then looked back at Sam.

"Alright, time to head home. Zap was bugging me for food just before I came over to get you and I forgot to get some out, and I don't want him rummaging through the cupboards."

"Okay. See you later, Riley!" Sam said as he got into the passenger seat.

Riley waved as the car pulled away, then headed back to her own house, wondering who Zap was. Probably a pokémon, but what kind? With a name like that, an electric-type, maybe? She arrived home and called her greetings to Coco and Rose as she went up to her room to drop her school bag. On her bed a book had been left – _Pokémon Variations and Where to Find Them_. She took it with her when she wandered back downstairs, reading the back.

 _Amongst the countless different pokémon that exist, many species have varying forms – whether they be evolutionary variants, regional variants, weather- or season- dependant, or even able to change in combat after reaching a certain threshold. This book details all variations within species recorded to date, and how and why they vary._

"Thanks for the book!" she said as she walked into the living room. Rose was on the sofa with Snipe curled up next to her, reading something or other on her phone. Rudy bounded in from the garden, yipping cheerfully. Riley sat on the sofa, patting her lap as an invitation for him to sit there. He climbed up to stretch out across her lap, tail wagging. Riley smiled as she ran one hand across his soft fur, watching as Perry trotted in from the garden too, hopping up on the armchair to preen her mottled fur. She and Rudy had probably been playing together again.

"How was your day?" Rose asked, looking up from her phone.

"It was alright," Riley said, opening the book. "I met Sam's dad, 'cause Sam invited me to go over his house after school on Monday, so when he came to pick him up we both went over to ask. Oh yeah, he gave me his phone number to give to you 'n Mum." She rummaged in her pocket for a moment, pulling out the now-crumpled scrap of paper.

"That sounds like it would be fun," Rose said as she took the paper. "Was he nice?"

"Yeah, I guess," Riley replied, though her voice was a bit distant. She had begun reading and was concentrating on the book.

The table of contents listed chapters on the various different forms described in the blurb on the back, along with a few more, like shiny pokémon and legendary pokémon with known form changes. The introductory chapter was similar to the blurb too, but in slightly more detail. It went on to say there were more variants being found all the time, and some pokémon previously thought to be differing species of the same family were in fact the same after further research, and spoke of the nature of science being letting knowledge be flexible when the facts change, etc. etc. Riley didn't quite understand all of it, but read through anyway, trying to grasp what she could.

The following chapter went into detail on temporary form changes, most of which were various ways pokémon changed form within battle. There was the phenomenon known as mega evolution, that could only take place with certain pokémon if they had a trusting bond with who they battled with and had the relevant items. Each mega pokémon had a specific stone imbued with power that it would need to have in order to mega evolve, and their trusted partners (usually trainers, though there were occasions where it was recorded without a human) generally needed to hold a key stone of their own. Then other pokémon could change form in battle under the right circumstances – for example, some darmanitan were known to change into what was known as their zen form when they had taken a certain amount of damage in battle. Then there were the weather dependant changes, the best example of which was castform, a man-made pokémon from the Hoenn region's Weather Institute…

"Ri-i-i-iley." Coco tapped her on the shoulder as she spoke, the name drawn out.

"Huh? Yeah?"

Coco chuckled, ruffling Riley's hair. "Heard you'll be visiting Sam's house after school on the Monday?"

"Yeah," Riley said, reluctantly looking up from the page. That had been _interesting_.

"Do you know what time he usually arrives at school?"

"He's usually there before me, I think."

"Hmm, okay. I was thinking if I walk you to school on Monday I can use the chance to say hi," Coco said, thoughtful. "That alright with you?"

"Yeah," Riley mumbled, trying to read while they spoke.

Coco rolled her eyes, smiling, and left the room. "Dinner won't be long."

Riley went back to reading, happy to while away the evening with her nose in a book.

* * *

Over the weekend, Riley decided it was time to start some battling practise with Perry. Coco had agreed to help out, and so on Saturday morning Riley got up bright and early. A little too early, in fact – she ended up sitting in the living room reading for a while before Coco was up, Rudy curled up on her feet. When she finally was, Riley was eager to get started. She was almost dragging her mother out to the garden, Perry strutting out confidently ahead of them.

"Alright, alright," Coco said, struggling to drink her coffee with an adolescent tugging on her arm. "Just give me a minute to wake up."

"But _Mu-u-um_ , I've been awake for ages!"

"Don't see what that has to do with me," Coco muttered, squinting in the sunlight. At least it was a beautiful day, perfect for battle practise. "Okay, go stand on the other side of the garden with Rudy."

Riley did as asked, and Coco drained her mug in the short while it took for her to walk to her own position, Perry following, ears perked and alert.

"'Kay, Perry, now remember Rudy's a young one who hasn't had any battles with Riley before," she said. "Uh, on that note, have you done any battling before, Rudy?"

The puppy tilted his head for a moment, thinking, before shaking it. He was standing eagerly in front of Riley, his tail wagging.

"Okay," Coco said, looking to Riley. "Did you get any word from Jack about what he might be able to do in battle?"

"Yeah, he said Rudy should be able to use… Bite, roar and ember."

Rudy simply barked.

"Okay. Let's see each of those. Perry, you're a tough gal, I'm sure you can handle it so just let him land the attacks for now so we can see how it goes," Coco said. The furret huffed slightly, but nothing more.

"Will you be okay, Perry?" Riley asked from the other end of the garden. Perry looked up at that, and bristled slightly, glaring back with a challenge in her eyes.

"Well. I guess so," Riley said, a little surprised. "Okay, Rudy, bite!"

The puppy charged forward, and Perry switched her gaze to him, letting out a hissing noise. Rudy responded by leaping at her, clamping down hard where his jaw found grip on one of her front legs. Perry's eyes narrowed slightly, but other than that she showed no sign of weakness. Instead of fighting back, she simply hissed at him again, and he let go, jumping back to put distance between him and his opponent.

"Looked like a solid bite from a pokémon who's never battled before," Coco said, smiling. Rudy wagged his tail at that.

"Next was roar, right?" Riley said, seeming just as excited by her mother's praise. "Roar!"

Rudy looked Perry right in the eye, and let out the most intimidating roar he could. It mostly sounded like a slightly extended bark, and Perry simply flicked an ear.

"Roar generally only works on weaker opponents or those close in capabilities," Coco said. "So… It's probably useless trying it on Perry."

"Oh…"

Rudy looked disheartened as well, his ears drooping slightly. Perry made a chattering noise, and he perked up again, letting out a battle-ready growl.

"The last one was ember, right?" Coco asked.

"Yeah! Alright! Rudy, ember!"

The growlithe opened his mouth and a small jet of flames streamed out, cinders dissipating in its wake. Perry closed her eyes as the fire reached her, shaking herself off as it burned out. She made a displeased hissing noise, pawing at a spot where some ash had clung to her fur.

"Cool, so Rudy's had a chance to try out all of his moves so far," Coco said, looking down at the dog. "Now how about we see how you fare trying to handle a hit yourself?"

Rudy barked and nodded eagerly.

"Okay! Be careful," Riley said, a little concerned. Coco had already done a whole journey of her own so Perry must be pretty strong, would Rudy be okay?

"Remember, you're up against a newbie," Coco emphasized. "Let's start small with scratch!"

Perry seemed eager to finally get to do something herself, and darted towards Rudy with a graceful agility that showed the practise put into it. She got close and darted around him, striking out with the claws of her front paw as she passed and ran back towards her trainer. Rudy let out a small whimper but soon stifled it, standing his ground.

"Rudy! Are you okay?" Riley called out. Rudy shook his head and looked back at her, wagging his tail and barking. Riley didn't feel too convinced, though. "Are you sure?"

"As his trainer, you need to trust him," Coco said. "It's definitely a good thing to be concerned for your pokémon, but you also need to realise that they know their strengths and limits."

Riley thought for a moment, digesting that. "Okay," she said after a while.

"Okay. Let's hit a little harder. Perry, shadow claw!"

Once more, the furret approached rapidly and precisely, and now as her claws flashed out an eerie blackness exuded from them. The second hit was tougher on Rudy, and this time he could not prevent the pained yelp that came from him. He staggered back, struggling to stay on his feet.

"Rudy!" Riley said worriedly. He looked back at her, let out a small yip and collapsed into a lying position.

"Looks like that's enough for today," Coco said, and Perry relaxed into a more comfortable stance. "He'll be okay, he just needs rest."

"Yeah?" Riley knew it was true from what she'd learned in classes. He didn't have any obvious lasting injuries from the training session, and it had just been practise. Nevertheless, she couldn't help but worry when it was real life as opposed to theory. "Then let's get you rested." She bent down to pick him up, and his tail wagged ever so slightly. Carrying him was a little awkward as he was more than half her size, but she managed to get him to the sofa. She let him down gently and sat down next to him, and he leaned against her and curled up to sleep.

"Aww, sweet," Coco cooed as she followed, Perry at her heels. "All things considered, he did pretty well."

"You think so?"

"Yeah. In time he'll be pretty strong. Especially if you grow with him as his trainer and come to understand him."

"Okay," Riley said, petting the dog's head. "We'll do our best!"


	7. Chapter 7 - Sam's House

Riley awoke on Monday morning feeling reluctant for the weekend to end. School was great and all, but it lost some of its lustre when a friend is lost and there's an epic journey only a couple of weeks away. Physically she was feeling fine, though - it had taken a while, but Rudy had finally learned not to hog all the bed space, and her muscles were feeling much better for not having to rest in awkward positions. She pulled herself out of bed slowly, petting Rudy before she got ready for the day. He opened his eyes lazily and wagged his tail slightly before dozing off again.

When Riley went downstairs for breakfast, Coco was already up and dressed in the kitchen with food of her own and a cup of coffee. Oh yeah. She was walking Riley to school so she could meet Nick. That meant they would have to leave a little earlier, so Riley wasted no time in getting herself fed.

"Morning," Coco said. "Sleep well?"

"Yeah," Riley said between mouthfuls of her cereal. "Rudy actually stayed on one side of the bed last night too."

"Good stuff."

Once the pair had finished eating, they soon headed out on their way to the school. Coco seemed in a good mood, smiling and ruffling Riley's hair as they left.

"Looking forward to going to Sam's house?"

"Mm! I wonder what his house is like," Riley said, shifting her backpack, trying to work out the contents from the shapes she felt against her back. Did she remember to bring that book? She hadn't finished reading it yet.

"You'll find out soon enough, eh?"

They arrived at the school gates and Riley looked around, trying to spot Nick's car. She spotted it as it came around the corner, pointing it out to Coco as they waited. Sam waved to them as they pulled over.

"Hi, Riley," he said as he got out of the car.

"Hey, Sam!" Riley said cheerily. "This is Coco, my mum. Mum, this is Sam."

"Good to meet you, Sam," Coco said with a smile.

"You too," Sam said, offering a shy smile of his own as Nick got out of the car.

"You must be Nick," Coco said, putting her hand out. "I'm Coco."

Nick smiled as he took it with a firm shake. "That's me. Pleasure to meet you."

"Okay, bye, Dad," Sam said, turning and walking over to the school grounds.

"Have a good day!" Nick said, waving.

"Guess I should go too," Riley murmured. "See you later, Mum!"

"Catch you later," Coco replied.

Riley ran to catch up with Sam, who was already at the gates. She waved back at Coco as she went, soon disappearing inside the building with her friend.

* * *

School was rather ordinary and seemed to pass slowly, but the day ended eventually. Riley excitedly followed Sam as they left. It had been _ages_ since she went to a friend's house, and last time... Well, it had been Molly's, but that clearly wasn't going to happen again any time soon. Nick waved from inside the car as they approached.

"Hey, kids! Good day?"

"It was alright," Sam said as he opened the car door, sitting in the back. Riley went around to sit on the other side of the backseat with him.

"How about you, Riley? Doing good?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said. "How far is it to your house?"

"Only about 5 minutes in the car," Sam said. True to his word, they weren't on the road long, and were soon pulling into a front drive. The house looked quaint from the outside, small but cosy. There was a small attempt at a front lawn, overshadowed by the berry tree growing at its forefront.

"Here we are, kiddos," Nick said as the car came to a halt. As they walked through the door, Nick gestured to a small table in the hallway. "You can leave your schoolbag there for now, Riley."

There was the sound of footsteps as Riley set her bag down, and a gallade appeared from another room.

"Wow, I don't think I've seen that pokémon," Riley said. "Hi!"

"This is Pan," Nick said, as the gallade nodded a greeting back at Riley. "He's a gallade."

"Cool! Nice to meet you, Pan!"

"We've also got Zap and Fuzz," Sam said as he took his shoes off. "Zap's a raichu and Fuzz is an absol."

Riley nodded. She knew those pokémon.

"I think Zap was napping on your bed when I left," Nick said, turning and heading to another room.

"Ugh. C'mon, my room's this way." Sam headed up the stairs. As expected, the raichu was curled up on his bed when the two walked in. "I'd invite you to sit there but it might be a bit static-y."

Riley laughed. "It's fine."

The sound of an unfamiliar voice prompted the rodent to look up. Upon seeing Riley, she sat up, swishing her tail and chittering.

"This is Riley," Sam said, patting the raichu on the head as he swept his hand over his duvet with the other. Riley heard the static crackling as he caught it. "Hopefully now you can sit without getting shocked or anything."

"I guess you're used to that, huh?" Riley sat next to the raichu, offering her hand to be sniffed at before petting her. Her fur felt slightly crackly, like an old tv screen after it had been on for a while. "Nice to meet you!"

Zap squeaked eagerly, rubbing against Riley's hand.

"She likes new people," Sam said.

"So I see," Riley said with a smile. "Now I only need to meet Fuzz."

"He's probably in the garden," Sam said, looking out the window by the bed. Sure enough, the absol was out there, lazing on a patch of grass in the sun. There was a book next to him on the grass.

"He reads?" Riley asked curiously.

"Yeah, when he can be bothered with trying to turn pages," Sam replied. "He reads lots on the weekends when me 'n Dad are here to help with that. I think he got sick of papercuts on his nose."

"I'll bet," Riley said, looking down at the absol's clawed paws. "Perry reads sometimes, but she's pretty good at turning pages without scratching them. Can we go say hi?"

"Sure."

Sam led Riley out to the garden. It wasn't big, but it wasn't terribly small either, and lining the edges was a neatly trimmed hedge. In the corners and dotted about were large rocks. Fuzz looked up as he heard them approach.

"Hey, Fuzz," Sam said. "This is Riley."

"Nice to meet you!" Riley said cheerfully as she bent down, offering her hand. The absol eyed her up and down before sniffing it, allowing her to stroke his soft coat. It was well groomed, and Riley thought it was close to rivalling Perry's. Close, but not quite. "Did you want any help with reading?"

Fuzz looked over at the book and nodded, letting out a gruff noise. She opened the book and began flicking through it quickly, waiting for some cue to stop. He let out a small bark when she neared the middle of the book, and she stopped. He tapped one foot against the ground a few times.

"A bit further ahead," Sam translated.

Riley nodded as she turned another dozen pages or so, until the pokémon huffed. "Here?"

Fuzz nodded slightly, eyes on the page. After a while, he tapped his foot again, just the once this time.

"That means he's ready for the next page," Sam said. Riley turned the page happily.

The two sat in the garden with Fuzz and chatted, content to while away the afternoon like that, and Riley was more than happy to oblige and turn the page of Fuzz's book whenever he tapped his foot. Occasionally she wouldn't notice and he'd have to huff to get her attention, but he didn't seem to mind too much. The time passed, and eventually they heard the doorbell ring.

"Oh, that'll be Mum," Riley said, and the two headed to the door. Nick was already there, welcoming Coco in. With her were Perry, Snipe and Rudy.

"Hi Mum! Hi Rudy, Snipe, Perry!" Riley said, tilting her head curiously. "How come you brought everyone over?"

"Thought we'd let everyone say hi," Coco said with a smile. Rudy bounded over to Riley, wagging his tail and sitting in front of her. Fuzz appeared in the hallway, attracted by the commotion, with a gleam in his eye. Perry met his gaze and chittered a greeting at him.

"So this is Rudy?" Sam asked, petting the puppy.

"Yep!" Riley said, beaming. "He's the best!" The dog's ears perked up at that, and he puffed out his chest.

"Come on in," Nick said, beckoning as he stepped back to make space. "Can I get you anything? Coffee or tea or such?"

"Coffee would be lovely," Coco said as she entered, holding the door open as the pokémon with her came through.

"Gotcha. The kitchen's this way."

Riley and Sam headed to the kitchen ahead of the adults, just in time to see Zap land on the floor, quickly regaining her composure and scampering over to a chair. Sam just sighed at her as everyone followed through, Nick heading to make drinks.

"So, had a good day?" Coco asked, smiling.

"Yeah, it's been alright," Riley said, trying not to giggle at the mischievous raichu. "Meeting Nick's pokémon has been lots of fun."

"I'll bet," Coco said cheerfully. "By the end of the day I should know them a little better, too."

"Why's that?"

"We decided we could have a little battle," Nick said, bringing over the coffee for Coco. "I travelled when I was younger as well, and it's been a while since I had a chance to fight. I reckon this lot are itching to go, too," he said, gesturing to Zap and Fuzz. The absol nodded with a small bark, and Zap swished her tail.

"We haven't had a proper battle in ages, and these two are up for it, so why not?" Coco said as she sipped. Rudy barked, letting out a little whine. "And he seems to want to join in, though I'm not sure if that's the best idea."

"Yeah?" Riley looked at the puppy, and he wagged his tail almost frantically. "We'll watch Mum and Nick and then see, yeah?"

Rudy yipped in response.

"I haven't watched Dad battle for ages," Sam said quietly, his eyes looking up brightly at his father. "This is great!"

"Shucks, son, you'll make me embarrassed," Nick said with a laugh. Riley looked up at him too, curious about the admiration in Sam's eyes. Was Nick a particularly strong trainer?

The kitchen was crowded with all the humans and pokémon currently in it, and yet Fuzz managed to pace by the door to the garden nonetheless. After a while he let out a huffing noise, almost sounding like a whine.

"You're really impatient sometimes, you know that?" Nick said, chuckling. "At least wait for our guest to finish her drink."

"Well, I can't say I'm not looking forward to it myself," Coco said, swirling her coffee before taking another gulp and standing. "Shall we?"

"Absolutely," Nick said, heading out to the garden. "Hope you're ready, because we sure aren't gonna let up!"

* * *

(A/N: hey all! sorry for no update last weekend, I had a bunch of extra shifts at work and never got around to much. got some time off after monday so hopefully will be able to get back on track if not ahead. hope you enjoyed, have a good day!)


	8. Chapter 8 - Training

Nick and Coco stood at opposing ends of the garden, their respective pokémon at their sides. Riley and Sam stood to the side, Rudy sat at Riley's feet.

"Alright, how do we wanna do this? You've only got two pokémon with you so shall I just use two of mine for now?" Nick asked.

"Sure, sounds good," Coco said. "Then if Rudy still wants to have at it he can train with whoever didn't battle so everyone gets some exercise?"

Rudy barked excitedly, tail wagging, as Nick looked over at his team. Pan nodded in agreement. Fuzz didn't respond, staring intently at Perry. Zap moved back and sat down, swishing her tail with a smile.

"You happy to sit out for now?" Nick asked. The raichu nodded. "Gotcha. Fuzz, you're up first!"

The absol barked and leapt forwards, taking a steady stance between his trainer and Coco. His fur bristled, hackles raised.

"Someone looks ready to go," Coco said, eyeing the absol. "Snipe, you good to take the lead?"

The vaporeon nodded, padding forwards to meet his opponent on the field. He stood calmly, his tail flicking slightly.

"Well, let's not waste any time!" Coco said animatedly. "Snipe, charm!"

Snipe fixed his gaze on Fuzz, blinking gently and relaxing his ears as he let out a babyish mewl.

"Fuzz, night slash!"

The canid pokémon had lowered its tail slightly in uncertainty, but hearing its orders it soon perked up and rushed forwards, claws bared ready to swipe at the vaporeon. Snipe held his ground, waiting for his next instructions. Once the distance between the two had closed, Coco spoke out.

"Now! Hydro pump!"

Fuzz leapt at Snipe right as Coco called out, and the vaporeon began the attack before he had a chance to alter his approach. His claws met Snipe's fur and scraped at his foe's body, and realising what was about to happen, he dug them in deep. The blast of water shot out of the vaporeon's mouth and made direct contact, rapidly pushing the absol back. His claws were yanked out with the same force that pushed him back, and Snipe hissed in pain as the absol flew back to the other side of the garden.

Nick held a thoughtful gaze, nodding as Fuzz fell roughly on his side, rolling over as he landed to catch some of the force and standing again. Coco was watching intently, a small but fierce smile on her lips.

"Ice beam!"  
"Psycho cut!"

The two trainers called out simultaneously, but Fuzz was faster, slashing powerfully as his claws glowed, sending a sharp purple wave at Snipe. It caught him as he was about to attack, and he shook his head with a growl before shooting back a stream of ice, sparkling in the light.

"Quick attack!"

The ice caught Fuzz just before he moved, but he didn't slow, managing to get out of the way of the rest of the ice as he rushed forwards, leaping between the large scattered rocks in the garden. Snipe struggled to keep track of where his opponent was as he darted around, and Fuzz caught him off-guard. The crash pushed the vaporeon off his feet, falling on his side as Fuzz leapt back to the far end of the field.

"Ice beam, again!"

Snipe didn't wait to stand, looking up and spitting the frigid beam at Fuzz as soon as he spotted him. The absol still had his back turned from returning to his position by his trainer, and he heard the next move called out and began to leap aside, but too late. The cold blast caught him as he was jumping, the force of it sending him just far enough forwards for him to lose his footing. He stumbled and fell to the ground, frost on his fur. Snipe was standing now, watching intently, but after a moment the absol still hadn't gotten back up.

"Guess you're done for now, eh?" Nick said with a gentle smile. Fuzz growled slightly but let out a defeated huff, staying down.

"Go, Dad!" Sam yelled from the side of the garden as Nick pulled a poké ball from a pocket and pressed the button, and the pokémon disappeared in a flash of red light.

Nick looked over and smiled at his son before speaking up again. "Pan."

The gallade stepped forwards to take Fuzz's place on the field.

"Psycho cut!"

"Snipe, hydro pump!"

Pan's arms glowed, and he slashed with the blades on his elbows. The blades of psychic energy flew towards Snipe right as he let loose another forceful jet of water, and it hit Pan squarely in the chest but was short lived – the purple scythes crashed into the vaporeon and he lost his balance, crashing on his side. He let out a tired huff and stayed down for the moment, flicking his tail.

"Thanks, Snipe," Coco said. Perry chittered eagerly, weaving her way forward to take his place as he slowly stood and slunk back to Coco's side, flopping by her feet. It wasn't exactly an ideal match-up – a normal type against a fighting type – but the furret wasn't deterred. Rudy barked from his spot on the sidelines.

"Alright, Perry, shadow claw!"

Perry darted forwards, weaving left and right to try and confuse her opponent as she approached, a dark purple glow appearing around her claws. Just as she leapt at Pan, Nick called out.

"Close combat!"

Pan didn't try to defend himself from Perry's dark-cloaked claws and grunted in pain as she slashed him but it didn't stop him from counter attacking, letting out a relentless onslaught of hits on the furret. She squawked in pain before falling back, unconscious.

"Dad wins!" Sam yelled triumphantly, punching the air. "I knew you would!"

"Well, we did our best," Coco said with a small smile as she pulled a poké ball out of her pocket, and with a flash of red Perry was returned to it. "Good match!"

Pan nodded as she approached, one arm clutching the other where Perry had hit him. She may have lost, but she had still done a decent chunk of damage before she went down.

Riley and Sam joined the two trainers as they met in the middle of the garden and shook hands, Rudy following with his tail still wagging.

"It was a good match," Nick said cheerfully. "It's been a good chance for my lot to get some good exercise. Fuzz gets bored so easily, but after that he should calm down for a while."

"He sure looked eager," Coco agreed, reaching down to pet Snipe's head. The vaporeon nuzzled against her hand, purring. "You gave him a real run for his money."

"You did great, Snipe!" Riley smiled as she spoke, and Rudy yipped in agreement. "Will Perry be okay?"

"'Course she will. If she'd had a hit like that when she was already hurt then maybe she'd need some poké centre attention but as it is she should be just fine after a good nap."

Rudy barked happily, wagging his tail.

"You still want a go?" Riley asked. He nodded his head.

"He sure is enthusiastic." Nick smiled, looking back to where Zap had started napping on one of the rocks. "Hey, Zap! You up to spar with Rudy?"

The electric pokémon looked up, ears perked, and nodded with a chirpish squeak. She bounded over to her trainer, chittering at Rudy. He yipped in return.

"Alright then. Guess it's you and me this time, Riley!" Nick turned as he spoke and walked to the end of the garden as he had when he battled Coco. "Rudy's new to this, so let's see how he is before we start hitting hard, okay?"

"Uhh, right!" Riley followed suit, a little nervous. It was only practise, but she still wasn't sure she'd be any good at this, and Nick seemed to have strong pokémon. Would Rudy be alright?

"We'll be watching!" Coco said, seeming to read her thoughts with Snipe at her side. "You'll be fine!"

Rudy stood facing Zap, shaking his head in anticipation. His fur shone golden in the sunlight.

"Whenever you're ready!" Nick said, but did nothing to initiate battle. Zap looked ready to go, but was also just watching patiently for now.

Riley supposed that meant it was up to her to make the first move. "Okay Rudy, use bite!"

The puppy jumped forward eagerly at her call, rushing at the raichu.

"Zap, quick attack!"

As Rudy neared, Zap lowered onto all fours, suddenly shooting at the growlithe as he got near. He was caught unaware and knocked back, not able to land his own hit. He growled and got up quickly, undaunted. Zap kept moving, bouncing between the rocks dotted about the garden. Riley tried to follow her with her eyes but struggled to keep up. There was no way Rudy would be able to catch up with that, right?"

"Ember!"

Rudy stood firmly and opened his mouth, letting out a stream of fire at the rodent. She was too fast though, and it fizzled out harmlessly on one of the smooth stone surfaces.

"Quick attack, again!"

Zap crashed into Rudy once more, and the impact bowled him over. He wasn't giving up though, and got back to his feet with another frustrated growl. How would they be able to hit an opponent so fast? Riley looked over at Coco worriedly, hoping for some guidance. Her mother smiled, and tilted her head down at Snipe. He met Riley's gaze for a moment, then let out a huffing noise and said something at Rudy. The growlithe flicked his ears, nodding. It was good if he was helping Rudy, but if they had any battle ideas, it wouldn't help much if the trainer didn't know them… Riley thought back to how Snipe had fought against Fuzz. In retrospect, she realised the vaporeon had barely moved.

 _Oh! I get it!_

"Once more," Nick called out. Zap chittered as she leapt at the puppy once more.

"Rudy, bite! When she's close!"

Coco smiled and nodded as Rudy bared his fangs as Zap neared, clamping down hard with his jaws on her as she rushed at him. This time he wasn't knocked back, and while she hit him solidly, his grip on her through his teeth was enough to keep him from falling away. Zap squeaked harshly and shook herself, trying to get free.

"Thundershock!"

She stopped struggling and instead let out a jolt of electricity, shocking the puppy with a flash of bright light. He whined and his grip loosened enough for her to shake him off, returning to the far side of the garden. Rudy shook his head and tried to stand ready, but the electricity clung and he wasn't able to move his leg properly – he was paralysed. He looked at it and whined. The dog was starting to look rather exhausted. Riley was worried for him, but she remembered what Coco had said about trusting her pokémon. If he was willing to fight, she would let him continue.

"Rudy, ember!"

"Zap, use thundershock again!"

Rudy let out another burst of scarlet flames as Zap loosed a new bolt of electricity across the garden. Both made contact, but Zap remained on her feet as the smoke cleared, while Rudy fell down on to his paws, panting as he flopped down on the grass.

"Rudy! You okay?" Riley said, running over. He let out a little whine, tired.

"You did great, pup!" Coco applauded as she walked over, smiling broadly. Snipe followed, nodding in agreement.

"You think so?"

"Sure thing. And you were pretty good too. You picked up on what we were saying right away."

"Well, you didn't actually _say_ anything," Riley pointed out.

"She's not wrong." Nick laughed as he joined them, Zap and Pan close behind. "But yeah, that wasn't bad for a pair with no experience."

Riley grinned at the praise, picking up the tired puppy. "Hear that? You did awesome, Rudy!"

He barked cheerfully, nuzzling his trainer. She hugged him for a while, but soon had to put him down again. Coco pulled his poké ball out of her pocket, handing it to Riley.

"Here, let him rest up."

"Okay." With a press of a button, the young dog disappeared in a flash of red light.

"That was really cool," Sam said, standing by his father. "Dad, can I get a pokémon soon?"

"Yeah? I guess you are getting to the age," Nick said thoughtfully. "Any particular kind of pokémon in mind?"

"Really? Umm…" Sam trailed off, clearly having not thought that far ahead. "Let me think about that."

"Hah, alright."

Riley finally stopped holding Rudy's poké ball and staring at it and put it into her pocket before looking up at Nick. "Thanks for helping Rudy train. You too, Zap!"

"No problem," Nick said, smiling. Zap chirruped in agreement. "But hey, don't forget it's training for you too. Battling involves both pokémon and trainer."

"Right!"

"And now it's about time we head home," Coco said, ruffling Riley's hair. "Let's let everyone rest up, hey? And Rose should have dinner ready soon."

"Okay!" Riley nodded and headed back through the house, picking up her bag where she'd left it by the front door. "Thanks for having me!"

"Thanks for coming over," Sam said as he followed her to the door.

"Feel free to come over any time," Nick added from behind him. "Rudy's welcome too."

"Thanks," Riley said again, feeling the poké ball in her pocket.

"Thanks for taking care of her," Coco said warmly as they stepped out onto the pavement. "And for a good battle. We'll see you soon, I'm sure."

"Sure thing," Nick replied, and Sam waved as they left, heading back to their home.

* * *

"Welcome back," Rose called from the kitchen as Riley and Coco walked through the front door. "Did you have a good time at Sam's?"

"Yeah! They have three pokémon – Zap, Fuzz, and Pan – and we battled! And Fuzz likes reading. Me 'n Sam sat outside for a while with him and helped him with his book," Riley said cheerfully. "Rudy battled with Zap too, but Sam's dad is really strong so we lost."

"Yeah, we lost too," Coco said as she walked into the kitchen. Snipe had curled up on his bed as soon as they walked in, and after being let out of her poké ball, Perry had similarly flopped down on one of the armchairs in the sitting room to nap. "Are you gonna keep Rudy in his poké ball or let him out to sleep or what?"

"Oh, I dunno…" Riley paused to think. "I'll let him out, I guess. Back in a mo." She went upstairs and dropped off her schoolbag in her room, pulling his poke ball out of her pocket and releasing him on the bed. He was already sleeping, so she left him there as he was and went back downstairs.

She returned to the kitchen in time to see Rose setting plates of food on the table, and the three gladly sat down for dinner. The radio was on in the background, probably from Rose listening to music while she cooked, and it was playing a familiar tone as the news came on.

"The Fallow Festival is coming up in only a month and a half, and Fallow town is already preparing," came the voice of the news reporter.

"Oh yeah, that's this year," Coco said. "This'll be the first time you could go. Think you'll stop by on your journey?"

"Absolutely," Riley said. Festivals were always fun! "What's it about, anyway?"

"It's every twelve years, so the last one would've been just before you were born," Rose said. "It's a festival to celebrate the legendary pokémon entei, suicune and raikou. They're seen around Muren occasionally, and people noticed it tended to happen every twelve years, so started having a festival on the years they're expected to be here. They're thought to bring good harvests with them."

"Cool! I hope I get to see them," Riley said, eyes gleaming. It would be so awesome to see a legendary pokémon!

"Maybe you will on your trip," Coco said.

"Did you?"

"Hah, I wish," she replied. "I wasn't travelling around on the year of the festival though."

"Oh…" Riley trailed off, and the quiet let them hear the reporter again.

"…and wild vulpix sightings have been back on the increase. In other news, there have been occasional reports of wild pokémon around Mount Magna acting unusually. The cause of this is unknown, and citizens are implored to be cautious if they see anything abnormal in the area."

"Wonder what that's about," Coco said.

"Hmm… Hopefully nothing too big," Rose murmured.

"Well, you won't want to go up Mount Magna for a while anyway," Coco said, nodding at Riley. "I'd say leave that 'til you've got a few more pokémon - and maybe when Rudy's evolved. You'll want a big fluffy fire pokémon like arcanine to keep you warm up there."

"Yeah," Riley agreed. "And anyway, I want to go to the festival first!"

"Get there too fast and it won't have started yet," Coco said wryly.


	9. Chapter 9 - Beginnings

The remaining weeks before Riley was to leave passed uneventfully. Every so often she would visit Sam's house, often taking Rudy with her to train with Nick. They trained at home with the help of Perry and Snipe too, but the young pup had yet to secure a victory over any of the well-trained pokémon. Riley studied harder than ever in pokémon classes at school, determined to be the best trainer she could for Rudy, but her excitement for her journey only grew as the time neared and she found it difficult to concentrate in classes. As the time grew nearer she found herself counting down the days, filled with anticipation. Eventually her last day at school came before the weekend she had planned to leave.

She arrived at the school much the same as usual, if not for her excitable smile. Just one more day! Today she'd have lessons like she always had, and then that would be the last of them for… Well, however long she was gone! Would it be weird to no longer be going? Whenever adults changed their routines they always said it would be strange not to do this or that any longer, but she wasn't sure she'd find it too unusual. She couldn't help but wonder, was it _actually_ weird or was it just one of those things adults always said? In any case, she was too preoccupied being excited about going to dawdle on what she'd be leaving behind. Sure, she'd miss Sam, and everyone at home, but there was a whole journey ahead of her!

She waved to Sam as she got to the classroom, dropping her bag and sitting down. "Hey, Sam!"

"Hey," he replied, offering back a small smile of his own. "Guess this is your last day here."

"Yup!"

" _Finally_ ," came a quiet but scornful voice from behind them. Riley turned to see Molly and her friends, near enough to hear their conversation but pretending she was busy with her own.

"Ugh," Riley said, rolling her eyes at the disdain. "I won't be missing _someone_."

Sam was quiet for a moment, seeming almost hesitant to speak up. "I still don't really get what happened… Well, I mean, I sort of do, but…"

"What's not to get?"

"I know what _happened_ , but I don't really get why she'd be so mean to you about it all?"

"Right?" Riley huffed loudly, nodding. "I guess she's just a _horrible person_."

Sam winced at how deliberately audible she was being, regretting having said anything at all. "Mm…"

"Alright, settle down," Mrs Williams said. "I won't stand for any squabbling. As I'm sure you're already aware it's Riley's last day before she goes on her journey, so if you have any farewells to say or differences to settle now's the time."

She paused momentarily, waiting for anyone to speak up. Riley knew what she meant with those last few words and awkwardly shifted in her chair, feeling a little smaller. The silence didn't last long though, and the teacher soon began their classes for the morning. For the most part, the day passed as any other would. A couple of her more amiable classmates came to say goodbye during the breaks, and any other teachers she saw throughout the day gave her well-wishes for her trip. Her lessons felt the same as normal even though they'd be her last for now, so maybe saying it felt weird _was_ just an adult thing.

The end of the day came eventually and Riley walked through the gates with Sam, who stopped just outside the school grounds.

"Um… I got you something," he said, reaching into his bag. "Since we won't see each other for a while, I thought I'd get you a leaving present."

"Oh, really? Thanks!" Riley said with a smile.

"It's only something small," Sam said modestly as he held out the gift, a small growlithe keychain to put on her bag.

"Growlithe!" Riley said excitedly, admiring the little keychain. It wasn't overly fancy or intricate, but she loved it nonetheless. It didn't look all too similar to Rudy other than being the same pokémon but she shrugged it off – they wouldn't all look identical. "Thanks, Sam!"

He smiled, but Riley thought it seemed a bit weak. "You okay?" she asked.

"Mm…" He paused, unsure of what to say. "I just… I'll miss having you at school…"

"Oh," Riley said. "Well… Everyone else'll still be around."

"Yeah…"

He didn't seem terribly reassured. Riley fiddled with the keychain in her hand, searching for the right words. Maybe she could come back at some point to say hi?

"Wait, didn't your dad say you could go on a journey soon too?"

"Yeah..?"

"Then you'll have a pokémon with you all the time, so you'll always have friends around. And maybe we'll meet up somewhere too!"

"That's true," Sam mused. "I still don't know what kind of pokémon would be best for me though…"

"Well, maybe you don't have to know! Rudy was a surprise for me, I didn't ask anyone for a growlithe in particular," Riley said, trying to give a warm smile as she put the keychain on her bag. "Anyway, you've lived with your dad and his Pokémon your whole life, right? Since you already have some experience with pokémon you could probably get along with any kind."

"I doubt I'd be fine with something difficult like a tyrunt…"

"Are they hard to handle?" Riley was surprised. Whenever they had gone to see Coco's tyrantrum, Mei, she was always to even-tempered.

"Apparently they throw tantrums any time something they don't like happens," Sam explained. "And their jaws are pretty scary."

"Oh… Well, maybe not _any_ kind. But you'd still be pretty fine with most kinds, I bet!"

"Hmm. I'll ask Dad about it," Sam said, seeming a little less glum.

"Yeah! I'm sure you can get travelling real soon once you get a pokemon. You'll catch right up!" Riley said with a smile, hoping Sam might offer one in return. He did, and she turned to head home, waving. "I gotta get home, but I'll see you again! For sure!"

"Mm-hmm," he agreed, waving back. "See you, Riley!"

* * *

Opening the front door, Riley arrived home to see Rudy and Perry scampering down the stairs, the puppy in hot pursuit of the furret. Seeing his trainer return caused him to pause though, and he skidded to a halt at her feet, yipping in greeting.

"Heya," Riley said with a smile, petting the dog as she sat to take her shoes off.

"Welcome home," Rose called from down the hallway. "How was your day at school?"

"It was alright," Riley replied. "School wasn't much different, a couple people said goodbye. Sam gave me a super cool growlithe keychain though!" She walked into the sitting room where Rose was, twisting her bag round to show off the keychain.

"Oh, how nice of him! Did you say thanks?"

"Of course!"

Riley plonked down on the sofa next to her mother, looking at the contents of her now-ex-schoolbag. "What should I do with my school stuff?"

"Find somewhere in your room to put it all," Rose said, smiling. "You might not need it for a while, but you might when you get back."

"I guess," Riley said, bouncing back up and heading up to her room.

"Don't forget to keep a couple pens and a journal," Coco said as she passed her in the hallway. "It's always worth having something to put notes or reminders in."

"Got it!"

Rudy followed as Riley went upstairs, tipping her bag out on the bed. All her school books could just go on top of the bookshelf for now, and there they were hastily dumped in a somewhat messy pile. Time to start packing things she actually needed! Clothes first. Some for cold weather, some for hot, and a few spare shirts and jeans. That already filled a fair amount of her bag, but there was enough space to shove in a sleeping bag just in case she needed it. After that she was able to fit her toothbrush and a couple other small things down the sides, but everything else would have to go in the other pockets. Fortunately her bag had many, one on each side and two on the back. One side pocket was given a torch, and the other a water bottle along with a box full of various berries. A few snacks were stuffed into the top pocket on the back of the bag, and Riley stopped there. Was there anything else she'd need? The other pocket could be left for things like more poké balls... Oh yeah, a journal like Coco had said. Riley wandered to her bookcase, filled with fiction and non-fiction alike, looking for any notebooks she might have. In her search she found the StatRed. She'd forgotten about it completely! Maybe it would be useful on her journey. She picked it up and slipped it into the pocket with the snacks before resuming her search, finding a small purple notebook with oddish printed on the front she'd been given on a birthday and never got around to using. She took a pen from her school pencil case to put with it and zipped up the bag, putting it on the floor by her bed.

She paused to look at the bag for a moment, revelling in the excitement she felt. Tomorrow! Tomorrow she was going! Soon she'd be going off and travelling around and meeting new people and pokémon and seeing new places and doing whatever she wanted!

She sat back down on the bed for a moment, only to land on her school lunchbox. Rudy let out an amused huff as she squeaked slightly in surprise. She'd forgotten about her school stuff. Before anything else happened, it still needed homing. Her lunchbox she could take down to the kitchen, and the rest put on her desk. She grabbed the stuff to put on the desk, then took the lunchbox down, just in time for dinner.

* * *

The next morning, Riley was hyper in her excitement despite having barely slept, and practically bounced down the stairs with her backpack after stuffing in the last supplies, Rudy following in a slightly more controlled stride. "I'm ready! Are you ready? Ready, Rudy? Rudy-ready?"

The dog huffed slightly, slowly looking up with an exaggerated turn of his head as if in exasperation, but his ears were perked and tail wagging eagerly.

"Got everything ready?" Rose asked, waiting at the bottom of the stairs. "Toothbrush and hairbrush and socks all packed?"

"Yes!"

"All set, kiddo?" Coco's voice drifted through as she came to stand next to Rose, putting one arm around her waist.

"Yeah! I just said that. Can I go now? Please?"

"Not without a farewell hug, you can't," Coco said, pulling Riley into a tight embrace. "You take care out there, and make me proud, won't you?"

"We're gonna be the best!" Riley's voice was muffled by the hug as she squeezed Coco as tightly as her little arms could, then moving to hug Rose too.

"Stay in touch regularly? We'll want to know all about how you're doing," Rose said as she held the young girl, almost unwilling to let go.

"Yeah! Yeah! We'll update you all the time!"

"And you take care of each other, too. You and Rudy will be relying on one another," Coco said, then laughing slightly. "Rosie, she can't go if you don't let go."

Rose relaxed her hold as Riley wriggled free, opening the door and stepping out. It was the same front door but the air felt so fresh and walking out it seemed so much more enthralling when it was to go travelling!

"We will! We'll watch each other's backs! Love you, Mums!" She looked back as she strode down the street, waving. Rose and Coco waved back from the doorway, watching until she was out of sight.

"She _will_ be alright," Rose murmured, more to herself than anyone else, leaning against Coco.

"She sure will," Coco said quietly, her voice wavering slightly. Rose looked up to see tears welling in her eyes, and she was wearing the proudest smile she had. "Our little girl, off on her own journey. She's gonna be an incredible trainer, I know it."

"If she takes after you at all then of course she will," Rose said fondly, kissing her wife gently on the cheek as she closed the front door.


	10. Chapter 10 - Finally Off

Leaftrail Road stretched out ahead of Riley and Rudy. A grassy countryside path, trees lined one side of the route, growing denser further away as they lead into the Chillhaze forest. Riley had come here for walks with her mothers before and enjoyed climbing the trees close by, but she had always been warned against going deep into the forest, as the wild Pokémon were strong. How strong though? She figured she'd stay away for now, since while Rudy had a little battle practice under his belt he still hadn't been able to beat any of Coco's or Nick's pokémon, and they were the best reference for strong pokémon she had for now. Riley walked in the shade, pulling out the map she'd stuffed in her jeans' pocket as Rudy trotted alongside her. She already knew this path lead to Diony town, but she just felt like if you're travelling you just _should_ have your map out. Or was that just a movie thing? Either way, it didn't hurt to check.

Chirping in the trees above drew her attention, and she looked up to see a pair of taillow sat on a branch singing. Their dark blue feathers caught the sun, shining as the light reflected off them. Riley marvelled for a moment before taking out her phone and snapping a picture. The shutter noise it made was loud enough for them to hear and they stopped mid-song to look down curiously.

"Sorry! Didn't mean to startle you!" Riley called up. Rudy stopped by her side and let down a small woof. Riley looked down at him and had an idea. "Oh! Do you want to battle?"

One of the taillow cocked its head and chirped, seemingly addressing Rudy. He replied in another little gruff noise and looked up at Riley.

"Oh, you're okay to battle, right? I guess I should've double-checked first," Riley said sheepishly. The puppy just wagged his tail in response, standing ready to fight. The taillow that seemed interested hopped to another branch before taking off, its companion watching. The bird didn't waste any time on getting started, gathering speed before turning to dive at Rudy.

"Uh! Rudy, bite!"

Rudy stood his ground, and when his opponent got within range, he leapt at them with fangs bared. The taillow was fast though, and swerved to avoid him, but as a result missed its own attack and pulled up into the sky again.

"Ember! Before it gets too high!"

Rudy landed and turned to see where the taillow had gone, spurting a burst of flames after it when he spotted it. It turned just a moment too late, the fire catching its tail and left wing. It squawked indignantly, flapping to rid itself of the embers that clung, and flew to a branch, growling at the dog.

"Ember again!"

Rudy opened his mouth to unleash more flames, but was soon interrupted.

"Wait-wait-wait we're on the edge of a forest that might be a bad idea let's not shoot fire at the trees," Riley rushed out as soon as she realised. Rudy glanced back at her, waiting to hear what to do next. The taillow saw the opportunity and dived at him again.

"Look out!"

Rudy reacted a moment too late, turning in time to see the bird swoop in and peck fiercely at him before flapping up high again.

"Sorry, Rudy!" Riley said, stepping forwards slightly. She'd made the wrong call and realised too late, and he'd taken a hit as a result. She had a lot to learn about this, clearly. The bird had turned and was about to turn and attack again.

"Okay," Riley said, gathering her thoughts. Trying to get in close didn't work against something so fast with the advantage of flight, so that limited their options. "Ember!"

Another jet of flames flew towards the bird, this time catching it fully, and it averted its course, just about managing to land without crashing through the fire.

"Now! Bite!"

Rudy leapt at it before it could recuperate, biting fiercely. The Taillow squawked in pain, and laid limply, panting.

"Did we win?"

Rudy stepped back and barked in affirmative, turning back to run towards his trainer.

"Awesome!" Riley bent down to pet him. "That was great, Rudy!"

The taillow stood up and ruffled its feathers, preening them back into place.

"Thanks, taillow! You were great," Riley said, kneeling down and taking off her backpack to rummage. She pulled out a container, opened it and took out a few oran berries, putting them down by the bird. It eyed them and looked up at her cautiously for a moment before hopping over to eat them. Riley passed one to Rudy as well, who ate it gladly, then started washing himself to get his fur back into place.

Riley took her phone out and sent the picture of the taillow she took to Coco, attaching a quick message – _just won our first battle against one of these guys!_ She was relieved their first battle had gone well, and it gave her a confidence boost. She took to the path with renewed vigour, smiling.

"Let's go, Rudy!" He barked happily and followed, turning back and thanking the taillow as they left.

* * *

As they proceeded, they challenged a few more wild pokémon to battles, thanking them all with berries afterwards. By the time they reached Diony town, Riley had already given away most of the ones she'd packed. When they arrived at the gate with its welcome sign, Riley took a selfie next to it to send home, pulling a silly face at the camera. She'd already made it to the next town!

…Well, perhaps _already_ wasn't quite right. It was late in the afternoon by the time they got there, since they'd spent so long challenging wild Pokémon to battles. They headed to the town's Poké Centre, wondering what to do next.

"Welcome to the Poké Centre," said the nurse as they approached the counter. "Can I help you?"

"Umm… Can you just do a check-up on my growlithe? We did a bunch of battles so I just want to make sure he's all good," Riley said, bending to pick Rudy up gently and place him on the counter.

"A growlithe! That's a rare sight over here, but no problem!" The nurse turned to the computer and quickly typed something in before turning back and looking at the Pokémon on the counter. "If you could just-"

She stopped, doing a double take at the puppy. "Goodness! Not just a growlithe, but a _shiny_ one at that!"

"Shiny?" Riley parroted, tilting her head.

"You didn't know? Well, I suppose I can't blame you, there aren't many to compare around here," the nurse said, typing at the computer again and turning the screen displaying images of growlithe while she explained. "Usually growlithe are a darker orange, but yours is a much paler colour, closer to yellow. Occasionally people find pokémon with these unusual colours. We're not quite sure what causes it, but all research on the subject shows they're just as healthy as their counterparts. Some people are quite enthralled by them due to their rarity."

"Oh, wow! I didn't realise you were so special, Rudy," Riley said, a whole new tone of marvel in her voice. A lot of what the nurse said was familiar, and she realised she remembered the details from the book on pokémon variants that her mothers had given her. Suddenly it made sense that Rose and Coco had seemed so impressed when he first came out of his poké ball – they must have realised. Why didn't they say anything? She'd ask later. Rudy seemed unperturbed by the news, but he wagged his tail proudly. Riley just pet his head.

"Well, as I had been saying before I got distracted, if you just wait over there, one of the staff will come out in a moment and call for you," the nurse said cheerfully. "There's a water machine and bowls of various sizes for pokémon to drink from too."

Riley went to take a seat after getting a bowl of water for Rudy to drink from and pulled her phone out. She sent a quick message to Jack to ask if he'd known – but he must have, right? There were lots of growlithe in Kanto so he couldn't have not noticed, he must've seen plenty of them before. She mulled it over for a while before a different nurse came over. He seemed similarly excited to the receptionist to see a shiny.

"You'd best be careful, too," he warned. "Since they're rare, they're very sought-after. Take care not to lose him, because someone else might try to make off with him if you do."

They confirmed Rudy was in perfect health and made their way out, asking for directions to a trainer inn on the way. Riley was still puzzled. As they walked, she called home, getting an answer after only a few rings.

"Heya," came the answer, Coco's familiar voice.

"Mum! We made it to Diony town!"

"Good job! I saw the photo you sent. It was pretty good, you should take more."

"Thanks! But Mum, we were just at the Poké Centre and they said Rudy was a shiny pokémon."

"Found out already, eh?"

Riley let out an irritated huff. " _Mum!_ Where you planning on telling me if I didn't realise?"

"Sure, I just wanted to see when you would realise."

Typical. Coco was so _like_ that. "They just said at the Poké Centre that I should be extra careful in case anyone wants to take him! What if something like that happened because I hadn't known!?"

" _Oh_. …Oh. …I didn't think about that," Coco said, sounding guilty. "That's… a really good point. Sorry, sweetheart."

"Mmmm." Riley scowled, despite the lack of visuals. "Well it's good I found out sooner rather than later but don't keep important things like that quiet! I know you just _love_ leaving me to figure things out for myself and all but if it's something like this, I'd really rather know as soon as I can!"

"Yeah… I… I'm real sorry," Coco apologised quietly, then paused as Rose's voice could be heard in the background. "I'll do something to make it up to you? Promise?"

Riley grumbled, but tried to let it go. "Okay. But next time something like this comes up think about it a little harder!"

"I will. Sorry, love. Do you wanna speak to Rose?"

"Sure."

"Okay. Sorry. Love you."

Riley pouted slightly. _Why can't she just tell me things?!_

"Hi, sweetie."

"Hey, Mum."

"So what was that about?"

"Rudy could've been in danger and I didn't even know! You didn't tell me he was a rare shiny that people might want to _steal_ or anything!"

"Ahh, I see," Rose said, sounding sombre. "Well… I was sure you wouldn't get too far without someone noticing."

"And what if they noticed and instead of told me decided to just take him?"

"…We would have got him back. But you're right, we should've told you. There was no real reason not to, but…"

"But Coco's too busy watching to see what _I_ do, like I'm some kind of…"

"Riley," Rose said quickly, before she could finish that sentence. "Listen. She's sorry. And I mean really sorry. She realises she shouldn't've done that."

"But she still _did_!"

"And you still have Rudy safe with you, and you know now. I saw her on the phone with you, I watched her face go pale when she realised she'd messed up. She's not going to just brush this off as a one-off accident."

"But…"

"It's okay to be angry. But don't cling to it, okay?"

"Mmmm."

"Did you catch any other pokémon yet?"

"No, not today."

"That might be a good idea. If you have more pokémon then they can help you take care of Rudy, too."

"Yeah… Tomorrow we can go look and see if we find any who want to tag along."

"So what are your plans for the rest of the afternoon?"

"I dunno… I should get some more berries. I gave away most of the ones I had."

"Haha, you're too sweet. Well, Diony town is the perfect place to get some, stop by the farmer's market."

"Yeah, I will. Thanks, Mum."

"No problem. We love you, dear."

"Love you too."

"Take care."

"Mmm. Bye."

Riley wasn't really satisfied with how the conversation went, but at least it seemed Coco was taking it seriously. That was something, at least.

* * *

Perry followed Coco as she went to the sofa in the sitting room and flopped down on it, head in her hands.

"Damn it," she said, almost growling at herself in annoyance. "Uuugh, I really messed up…"

Perry jumped up on the back of the sofa to nuzzle at her trainer's face comfortingly. Coco let her head hang back and crossed her arms, thinking.

Once she'd put down the phone, Rose came and sat next to her, pulling her head to her chest and gently stroking her hair. Coco let out a long sigh and leaned against her while Perry climbed down onto Coco's lap, and Snipe hopped up next to them as well.

"It'll be alright," Rose murmured. "Just give her a while."

"Mmm…"

Rose rolled her eyes, smiling slightly. _I just got off the phone with someone sulking and mumbling at me, you know_. She said nothing, brushing Coco's hair out of her face. They sat there for a while, Rose simply comforting her wife, before she broke the silence.

"So, what's the plan?"

"Huh?"

"You promised you'd make it up to her. What ideas have you got?"

"Right… I'd better think of something."


	11. Chapter 11 - Frustrations

Riley sighed as she put down the phone. Rudy looked up at her, but she didn't respond. They had arrived at the trainer inn, a homely-looking place despite how large it was. There had to be room for however many trainers happened by, after all. Trainer inns were effectively a bed and breakfast that was free to anyone with a valid trainer ID, and there was one in each town in Muren. Riley booked in, and took her backpack up to the room, leaving it there while they headed to the farmer's market. Rudy enjoyed sniffing the various stalls, and Riley restocked the berry supplies with the money she left home with.

Coco was just so _frustrating_ sometimes. Riley knew Rose had said to try and let it go, but she couldn't just ignore it. It wasn't that easy! After a while wandering the market, she stopped, finding a bench to flop down on. Rudy hopped up next to her, whining slightly. She sighed, petting the dog. "Sorry, Rudy. I just wanna sit for a while…" His ears drooped slightly, but he lay down with his head on her lap.

She sat broodily for a while, but not for long. Rudy was fidgeting and couldn't sit still, and wasn't patient enough to stay there. He got up and began sniffing around the bench, and while he looked back to check if Riley was happy for him to go as far as he did, when she wanted him to stay he ventured further anyway. She sighed and stood to follow him. Well, it didn't make all that much difference… She may as well let him go and explore the smells and sights. They ended up straying from the market, and Riley wondered if they'd be alright finding the inn again, but her worries were assuaged when she saw how well sign-posted it was all over the town – about as much as the Poké Centre.

Eventually Riley began to tire, and she called out to Rudy. "Come on, let's go back to the inn." He was happy to join her in turning back to go the way they'd come, and Riley looked out at the signs on all the corners to see which way the inn was. It took a while to get back, and by the time they did it was more than just a little dark out and they were feeling hungry. Time to get some dinner. They went to their room for Riley to store her berries and then back down to the inn's dining area. A few other people were there, two people a little older looking than Riley eating together with their pokémon. There was one man who looked much older, already an adult, just getting his food. Riley went to grab some of the food on offer for the evening, picking out a risotto and setting down a dish of pokémon food for Rudy. It seemed a little lacklustre, not quite as good as her mothers' cooking… They finished and returned to their room, ready to head to bed. Rudy quickly curled up at the foot of the bed and fell asleep, but after Riley had brushed her teeth and changed into her night clothes, she found herself unable to sleep. She was physically tired enough, but she still felt bothered about Coco, and her black mood kept her up. After an hour of lying in bed failing to drift off she got bored, and headed out to sit in the inn's garden.

Heading out into the cool night air, she realised she wasn't the only one there. The light coming out of the in's windows was enough for her to recognise the man in the garden as the older man who'd been eating when they got dinner, and he had a pokémon with him. She didn't recognise it but guessed it was a steel type from the way the light glinted off its four large metallic legs. The two were looking off into the distance, towards Mount Magna, though Riley wasn't sure what at. She couldn't see much of it in the dark other than a few patches of sky devoid of stars, blocked by the rocky precipices.

She wasn't too interested in talking to the stranger, but as she walked out the pokémon turned its massive body and saw her, grunting at its trainer. The tall man snapped out of his staring at the mountain, looking round to Riley. As she walked, a light lit up the garden, likely a motion activated one that had gone out with the man and his pokémon having been stood so still. She saw now he wore glasses, and had dark curly hair that she couldn't quite tell if it was messy or styled in some windswept manner or other. The pokémon was blue, with a large silver cross across its face and big claws tipping its four legs.

"Hello there," the man said, nodding to her.

"Hey," she said quietly, briefly making eye contact before resting her gaze on the large pokémon. It looked tough.

"Aren't you a bit young to be up so late?"

Riley shrugged, looking down. She'd just wanted to go outside because she liked night time… "Couldn't sleep."

"I see. Something bothering you?"

Riley hesitated, unsure of what to say. Did she want to talk about it? "Mmm…" No, not really. Even if he was a complete stranger and she wouldn't have to worry about what she said, she'd rather not talk much right now. "What about you?" She was reluctant to say anything, but if he started talking about himself instead, he wouldn't be asking about her at least. He put one hand to his chin, looking at his pokémon as if not certain what to say.

"Metagross and I were considering our next plan of action," he said simply. "There's been talk of the wild pokémon around Mount Magna acting unusually for quite a while now. It bears investigating, don't you think?"

Riley wasn't really listening, and it took a moment to register that he'd asked a question. "Oh, uh, yeah… I guess," she mumbled. She hadn't given it too much thought; she rarely paid attention to the news herself.

"Are you not bothered by it?"

"Huh?" Was she bothered by it? All she knew was that it might be dangerous so she should stay away for the time being. Before she said anything more, the man spoke up again.

"Well, you're only young," he said, though there seemed a hint of something in his voice. She couldn't quite tell what it was… But what did that mean anyway, that she was young? She was old enough to leave home, that was plenty old! "Have you been travelling for long?"

Well… Only just old enough to leave home. "No, just today," she admitted reluctantly.

"I see. I suppose you should steer clear then."

He seemed to have nothing more to say, and Riley was glad to not have to talk, but felt awkward standing outside with him. She retreated back to her room sullenly. So much for that.

What had that been about, anyway? First Coco playing games with her, then him brushing her off for being a kid? Was anyone taking her seriously? Who even _was_ that guy? She was even more irritated now. She shivered – the night air had been a bit colder than expected. If only her heated mood could heat the rest of her too… She curled up under the covers, wrapping herself up as much as she could and shifting to be next to Rudy. At least _he_ wasn't messing her around... She pet the puppy and closed her eyes, and eventually her irritation dulled and she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

The next morning Riley woke early despite her late night. Rudy was up as soon as she showed signs of life, eager to get going. Before going down to get breakfast Riley made the bed, and swept the bed a little, vaguely trying to rid the blanket of Rudy's fur. She didn't succeed much and when she left the room it still looked a little more golden-orange than before with the amount of it, but hey, at least she tried. As she walked to the dining hall, she passed the man from the night before. Much to her relief, he didn't say anything, only nodding at her in recognition as he passed. She thought back to the night before and how irritated she had been, and how he had seemed at the time – now that she wasn't in a foul mood he seemed amiable enough. Thinking about it, he hadn't even said anything that bad… Oh well. He was gone now.

They ate their breakfast hastily, ready to move on. Upon heading to the counter to book out, they found it unmanned, with a sheet left for guests to sign out with their time of leaving. Riley went to write on it, a few names on the list for that morning despite the earliness. One name caught her eye – "Mysterious C". Was that someone's idea of a joke? She found it funny enough and snickered a little to herself as she filled out the form. They headed out and on their way to the town's eastern exit. The path was lined with neatly trimmed bushes, and turned into a sprawling vineyard before the gate to the next route. Wild starly could be seen flitting between the trees, chirruping in the morning sun. It gave the vineyard a pleasant ambience, and Riley took out her phone to take a picture. Just as she was pressing the button to snap the shot, she heard a shout, and in the short delay before the picture was taken a pink creature managed to rush through, spoiling the shot. It was a jigglypuff, and it ran to the nearest flock of starly and let out a startlingly loud shout at them, spooking the birds into flying away. Riley jumped at the sudden noise, taking a moment to register what had happened.

"Hey! What are you doing?" she said after a moment. The pokémon turned to look at her, puffing up defensively. Rudy growled in response, stepping forward.

"What she's doing is her _job_ ," came a voice from the direction the jigglypuff had come from. Riley looked over to see a girl walking over, in her late teens. She wore a noticeably frilly lilac skirt and a pastel blue dress shirt with a pale pink lace jacket. "Those starly peck at the vines and ruin the crops."

"Oh…" Riley looked at the now-distant birds wistfully, wishing she had been able to take the picture before they'd had to leave. Rudy relaxed and returned to his trainer's side as the jigglypuff let out a self-important huff.

"So if you see any more of them, do us a favour and get rid of them, alright? My family owns the vineyard and it's my job – well, more like Spacy's job – to keep the vines clear of pests," the girl said, gesturing to the jigglypuff. She sighed, seeming bored. "It's a pain. But Dad doesn't want to use repellents or anything to keep them out because we keep it all organic, so we're stuck doing this."

"Um, okay," Riley said, unsure if it would be rude to keep walking. This girl seemed to have a lot to say… Or perhaps complain about.

"We've tried putting up netting around the vineyard but they just chew holes through it to get in," the girl said, rolling her eyes dramatically. "I'm Evie, by the way."

"I'm Riley. And this is Rudy."

"Nice to meetcha. Hey, do you wanna battle?"

"Huh?" That was sudden. Riley glanced down at Rudy, who had an eager look in his eyes. He seemed happy enough to oblige. "Sure, I guess." _I wonder if she always battles everyone she meets here? Or does she just want something to do other than chase off starly?_

"Nice," Evie said enthusiastically. Spacy the jigglypuff jumped up airily to her trainer's shoulders, cheering as she did so. She turned around and waved at Riley to follow, leading them to a clear spot. "Let's make this fun!"

* * *

((A/N: Apologies for the delay! I've been busy lately and just started a new job too so had little spare time on my hands. Hopefully I can back on track a little over the coming weeks. Hope you're enjoying it so far!))


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